Black Mirror
by VaderSpike
Summary: What if there was a parallel universe? Glory is the Slayer, Caleb is her Watcher, The Master is a vampire with a soul, and the Scoobies are the Order of Aurelius. Starts with Season One through Season Seven. Some seasons arcs are similar to the show. Others aren't.
1. Season One

Season One

Sunnydale High, Night

The halls of Sunnydale High were still and quiet. Two figures made their way down one of the hallways, one figure trailing behind the other. Xander Harris, a popular and burly jock, turned to the girl trailing behind him and grinned.

XH: Come on, Will. There's nothing to be afraid of.

The red-haired girl, Willow Rosenberg, approached cautiously, looking around nervously.

WR: Are you sure we should be doing this? It feels wrong.

Xander snorted and shook his head at her.

XH: Come on, Will. Where's your sense of adventure? Sneaking into the school at night is one of the best ways to start going out.

Willow crept toward her smirking date.

WR: So, you promise nothing will happen?

XH: (Turning to look down the next hallway) I promise you. Nothing will happen to either of us.

WR: Well, I can't guarantee anything about _us_.

XH: What?

Turning round, Xander saw that Willow's face had morphed into a horrible visage of yellow eyes and fangs. He tried to scream, but Willow had already grabbed him and plunged her fangs into his neck . . .

Sunnydale High, Day

The next morning, Sunnydale High was alive with laughter and excitement. It looked very ordinary. Nobody would have ever expected strange or horrible things to happen here. A car pulled up to the school entrance and let out a girl with curly light brown hair. Glory Dagon looked around at her new school suspiciously. Ever since she had become the Slayer last year, she had become much more self-aware of her surroundings. She knew what sort of things could be hidden from regular human eyes in seemingly peaceful places.

She walked up the front steps and into the building, looking for the principal's office (She had to meet the principal and get her schedule before she could go to her new classes).

At last, she found the right room and entered. A small, bald, rat-like man sat behind the desk. The nameplate in front of him read: Principal R. Snyder 111.

_Wow, a third generation principal? _

She sat down at the seat that Principal Snyder gestured at. He smiled kindly at her, then looked down at her record on his desk.

PS: So . . . Glory Dagon: sixteen years old, originally from Los Angeles, and . . . oh my! You burnt down your old school's gym?

Glory shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

GD: Um, yeah, I did. But it wasn't intentional.

PS: Yes, I'm sure. Now, Glory, we at Sunnydale High don't judge you by your record. As long as you don't cause any other trouble here, we'll be just dandy.

GD: Um, thank you, sir.

Snyder handed over her schedule. She browsed it, and then realized something.

GD: Um, Mr. Snyder? One of the books I need . . . um, I don't have it.

PS: Oh, no problem, dear. Just check a copy out from the library. Caleb will help you out.

GD: Caleb?

PS: Our librarian.

GD: Oh. Okay.

PS: Then enjoy your time here! Oh, and please don't swear in the hallways or litter. Thanks a bunch.

Glory nodded, then got up and left the office.

_The_ _principal seemed nice; too nice, actually. _

She walked down the hallway, passing other students who hurried past her in every direction trying to reach their classes, finally found the library, and pushed open the double doors inside. It was stiffly quiet and eerie. Not to mention slightly creepy. She drummed her fingers on the front desk, waiting for the librarian to come out and help her. Then someone tapped her on the shoulder from behind. She yelped and spun around. A tall man with neatly parted hair and wearing a tweed suit stood behind her: Caleb, she assumed.

C: May I help you, young lady?

He also had a thick southern accent.

GD: Um, yeah. I came here to pick up a book, actually. I'm new.

Caleb scrutinized her intently.

C: Miss Dagon?

GD: (Slightly surprised) Um, yeah. Guess in a small town like this, everyone notices a new girl, huh?

C: I'm Caleb, the librarian. I was told you were coming.

GD: Good. Okay, I need a book called-

C: (Circling his desk) I know what you're after.

He took out an old, moldy looking book and slammed it down on the desk in front of her. The book's title read "Vampyr". Glory looked down at the book, then up at Caleb, looking resigned.

GD: I knew it. You're my new Watcher, aren't you?

C: (Taken aback) Well, yeah. I thought that was obvious.

GD: Well, forget it. I'm not interested.

C: I beg your pardon?

GD: I'm done! Find someone else to kill vampires.

C: There isn't anyone else. A new one cannot be called until the previous one dies.

GD: But then why does it have to be _me_?

C: Because _you are the Slayer_. In every generation, a Slayer is born. One girl in all the world, a chosen one. One born with the strength and-

GD: (Rolling her eyes) -skill to stop the vampires and the spread of their evil. Yeah, I've heard it all before.

C: Then I don't understand. You've already accepted your duty.

GD: But I've already been expelled once because of my Slayerness. I don't want that again!

C: But we need you! This town is on top of a Hellmouth.

GD: Hellmouth?

C: Yes. Basically it's a hotspot for demonic activity. Something will be going down here very soon! I'm sure of it!

GD: Oh, come on! How bad can the evil be in a place called _Sunnydale_?

Somewhere in the sewers

Underneath the school, Willow and Xander made their way through the sewer tunnels. Since he had woken up and discovered that he had become an undead vampire, Xander had found himself deeply attracted to Willow, even though he realized now that she had deceived him with her innocent schoolgirl act all this time (She mentioned that she had used this act multiple times to lure her prey for the last four hundred years). It felt strange. He had thought that _he_ had been the one doing the deceiving, drawing her to him instead of the other way around. And now he _admired_ her for it? Perhaps it was because she was his sire (She had also mentioned that most vampires feel a certain attachment to their sires). She was taking him to meet her master, who was apparently in charge of most of the vampires.

They reached the end of the tunnel and Xander saw before him a stone chamber that looked like a sunken church, filled with torches. There was a group of more vampires gathered around a small blonde haired girl wearing a Nazi-like black leather uniform. They and Willow gazed at the girl with respect and slight fear. Xander frowned and looked sideways at Willow.

XH: Um, why are you guys staring at that girl like she's something special? Where's this _master_ you wanted me to see anyway?

The blonde girl looked over at him with a dangerous and fierce look, something Xander had never expected to see on a girl's face.

The next thing he knew, he was gagging as the girl had swooped over to him and grabbed him by his neck. He realized now that this girl must be The Master vampire. She looked into his watering eyes and sneered.

M: You must be new. No other vampire would dare question me, let alone be foolish enough to not know that we vampires can't suffocate because we _don't breathe_.

The vampires behind her laughed. Willow stepped forward.

WR: I'm sorry, master. He doesn't know everything yet. He's young.

The Master dropped Xander. He got up from the floor and faced her warily.

XH: Look, I'm sorry. It's just . . . after what Willow told me about you, I didn't expect you to be a girl. That's all.

The Master turned to Willow.

M: Tell me, what inspired you to sire this . . . boy?

WR: I wanted a playmate. Besides, he was strong as a human, so I figured as a _vampire_ . . . !

The Master looked Xander up and down, studying his burly figure. Then she smiled up at Willow, whose deathly pale face lit up with happiness at The Master's approval.

M: (Thoughtfully) I _could_ use him.

XH: (Indignantly) _Use me?_ That makes me sound like some kind of tool!

M: Every vampire is my tool. If you don't like it-

She turned and grabbed one of the vampires standing behind her. She squeezed his neck so hard that his head popped right off his shoulders and exploded into dust, followed shortly by his body. She dusted off her hands and returned her gaze to the newly sired vampire.

M: -_that_ could be your future instead.

Xander stared down at the pile of dust on the floor, then grudgingly bowed his head to The Master. She nodded approvingly, then strode over to her throne sitting on the altar and sat down upon it.

M: Now then, the Harvest will begin tomorrow night. After which, I will finally be freed from my mystical imprisonment here and reach the surface. See that nothing interferes with this.

Sunnydale, Night

Glory twirled her stake as she patrolled Sunnydale's streets. According to Caleb, this town was swarming with vampires at night.

Her new Watcher was very strange. Well, more _mysterious_ really. She had never known that there were any southern Watchers before, since they were mostly based in England. He seemed nice enough, though.

She stopped suddenly and looked behind her. She had the nagging feeling that someone was following her. She turned into an alley and hid behind a trash bin.

A shadowy figure entered the alley a few seconds later, wearing a trench coat that flapped in the night breeze. She watched as the figure paused and looked around. Then she leapt out from behind the trash bin and tackled the figure, casing them both to collapse onto the pavement. She recoiled. The man underneath her had a face so wrinkled it reminded her of The Emperor from the Star Wars movies. He was also bald, had glowing red eyes, and pointed ears. Seeing the massively crinkled forehead, she had no doubt that this was a vampire: a very _old_ one, apparently. She raised her stake, but the vampire held out a hand to stop her.

V: Wait! I'm not going to hurt you!

GD: Yeah right. I know what you are!

V: I don't think you do. Let me explain.

Glory lowered her stake, but did not get off him. She glared down at the vampire, who sighed.

V: My name is Heinrich.

GD: Heinrich? What a . . . odd name.

H: (Shrugging) Yeah, well, there weren't many people named Brian or Doug nine hundred years ago.

GD: You're nine hundred? Is that why your face is all screwed up?

H: Thank you for not bringing that up. And yes. When you've been a vampire for as long as I have, you lose your human visage after a while.

GD: So you _are_ a vampire then!

H: (Wearily) Yes, but I'm not evil. Not anymore, at least.

GD: What do you mean?

H: Well, you see, back in the old days, I was like any other vampire: I killed and slaughtered and caused pain. But then I killed the daughter of a gypsy tribe. As a punishment, they cast a curse that restored my human soul. When you become a vampire, a demon gets your body but not your soul. That's why vampires can kill so easily: No remorse or conscious. So, for the last one hundred years or so, I've had to suffer with the knowledge of all the people I'd killed and maimed. I've been an outcast from other vampires since then, drinking only pig's blood to survive.

Glory stared down at Heinrich in amazement. She had never heard of a vampire with a soul before. It was a very inspiring story, but could she trust him?

GD: (Slowly) So . . . you're a vampire with a soul who's reformed?

H: Basically, yeah.

GD: So why were you following me?

H: Because you're the Slayer and I want to help you.

GD: Help me? With what?

H: Well, I thought I'd let you know that the Harvest is happening tomorrow night.

GD: The Harvest?

H: It's a ritual that will allow The Master to rise and take over.

GD: The Master?

H: Master vampire. She's been trapped underground for a hundred years ever since she tried to open the Hellmouth.

GD: So, The Master vampire is a 'she', huh?

H: Yep. Her original human name was Buffy Summers.

GD: Oh. Well, I can see why she changed her name.

H: Just tell your Watcher and be ready to prevent the Harvest from happening. It will likely take place somewhere with a lot of people-

At that moment, a red-haired girl jumped out from behind Heinrich and knocked him down, while a guy with spiky black hair jumped Glory and wrapped his arms around her, pinning her arms to her sides. Both of them looked about Glory's age and were dressed in black leather.

WR: Sorry Heinrich, but nothing is stopping the Harvest tonight.

XH: Hey, Will! How am I doing? Can I kill her?

WR: (Rolling her eyes) Yes! She's just a girl, after all.

But before Xander could sink his teeth into Glory, she elbowed him hard in the stomach. Not expecting the girl's strength, Xander doubled back and released her. At the same time, Heinrich swept his leg under Willow, tripping her up. Glory and Heinrich stood side by side, facing the two vampires, who looked dumbfounded. They exchanged startled looks, then backed away and ran out of the alley.

GD: Who were those guys?

H: I don't know about the boy, but Willow, the redhead, is one of The Master's subordinates.

GD: (Looking after the two vampires) They didn't seem very tough. What about-?

Turning around, she saw that Heinrich had vanished too.

Sunnydale High, Day

C: Interesting. I've never heard of a vampire with a soul before.

GD: I know, but what about this Harvest thing? Heinrich said something about The Master vampire rising to the surface to take over.

C: Well, as far as I know, this event involves The Master branding a minion with a symbol that links them together. This minion, called The Vessel, feeds on three humans, which strengthens The Master and allows her to break through the Hellmouth's barrier, ascend to the surface, and open the Hellmouth.

GD: Is that bad?

C: Yes! Opening the Hellmouth releases a horde of ancient demons upon the earth!

GD: Oh. Well, that _is_ bad.

C: Which is precisely why we must prevent the Harvest from happening.

GD: How?

C: Just find the minion wearing a symbol on their forehead and slay them.

GD: Oh. I can do that. Heinrich said that it would likely take place somewhere crowded, with plenty of people.

C: Do you know of any place like that?

The Master's Lair

M: The Bronze? Perfect!

The Master sat back in her throne, looking satisfied. Rupert Giles, the most simple-minded minion she had, beamed, proud of himself for coming up with such a good idea all by himself.

RG: Thank you, master. It's always full of people, so there will be plenty of-

He was interrupted by Xander and Willow hurrying into the chamber.

M: Is everything in order?

WR: No, it's not!

XH: Could you please tell me what the hell just happened back there? You said she was just a girl!

WR: That's what I thought!

M: What are you two talking about?

WR: Master, we found Heinrich talking to a girl. He was telling her about the Harvest. So we attacked them, but the girl was . . . she was stronger than she should've been. I think she's-

M: A Slayer?

The Master's tone was low and dangerous. Willow gulped.

M: There is a Slayer here? Is that what you're telling me?

WR: Um, yes.

M: Well, don't let her interfere or you'll both be dust in the wind. Xander!

He flinched.

M: Come here.

Xander approached The Master tentatively, worried about what might happen to him now.

M: I want you to perform as The Vessel.

Xander looked intensely relieved. Giles looked anguished.

RG: But . . . _I_ wanted to be The Vessel!

XH: Too bad, Rupert.

RG: (Whining) My name is Giles! I told you, I don't like Rupert!

XH: Why does it matter? No matter what you're called, you're still a wimpy dork guy.

M: Enough!

The Master held out her hand. Xander swaggered forward, rammed Giles with his shoulder as he passed, then knelt down, took The Master's hand, and bit into her wrist . . .

The Bronze, Night

Later that night, Xander, Willow, Giles, and several other vampires broke into the nightclub. There were screams and shouts as the vampires surrounded the people inside, blocking the exits. Xander leapt up onto the stage at the back of the room, while Giles shone a blue spotlight on him from the balcony above.

XH: Hey! Hey! Calm down, people! We're only gonna kill three of you!

Willow dragged a girl from the crowd up to Xander. She struggled and tried to escape, but Xander held her tightly. Then his face morphed to vampire visage and he bit down into her neck. A few seconds later, the girl dropped dead to the ground.

XH: (Wiping his mouth) Mm. That was good. O-kay, who's next?

At that moment, Giles came flying down from the balcony over their heads. The spotlight he had been aiming was knocked sideways, its beam of light dancing wildly around the room. Looking up, Xander saw the curly haired girl who had been with Heinrich before standing on the balcony, steadying the spotlight with one hand so that it focused on Xander again.

GD: Oh, I'm sorry. Was he friend of yours?

XH: Slayer!

GD: You must've known I was coming.

She jumped down from the balcony and landed on stage in front of Xander, poised in combat stance.

Meanwhile, Caleb and Heinrich had opened the back door and were shepherding the other people out of the club. Willow ran up and jumped on top of Caleb, knocking him down. But she recoiled as he raised a cross in her face. Realizing she was now cornered between the wall, Caleb, and Heinrich, Willow decided to run for it. Giles sped after her, arms flailing wildly in panic like a windmill.

Up on stage, Glory had beaten the living daylights out of Xander, who lay crumpled on the floor. He crawled away from her and ran out of the club too. Caleb and Heinrich approached Glory as she hopped down from the stage.

GD: Is it over?

C: I believe so. The Master only had until tonight to get free. It's 12:01 in the morning, so she missed her opportunity. It doesn't matter that The Vessel survived.

GD: So it _is_ over then?

C: For now. The Master will undoubtedly try to escape again. Besides, vampires aren't the only demonic creatures living in this town.

GD: So it _isn't_ over?

H: I'm afraid not. I think we'll be fighting for a very long time yet.

The Master's Lair

Xander, Willow, and Giles stood in shame in front of The Master (All the other vampires with them had been killed).

M: You've all failed me.

WR: I know. We're sorry.

XH: Come on, give me a break here! I'm new to this! I haven't had any practice, you know!

M: You are all pathetic. The only reason you three aren't dead is because you are now the _only_ minions I have left! Get out of my sight. Now!

They all hurried out of the room.

The Master sighed and slumped back in her throne, putting a hand to her forehead. A sound from the tunnel caught her attention. Dawn, her second in command, (also known as The Anointed One) walked in.

AO: Didn't work, huh?

M: No, it didn't.

AO: What will you do now?

M: I don't know yet. There's nothing left to do but wait for the next opportunity.

AO: You mean wait for the next big evil to turn up, and bargain with them to help you?

The Master put a hand on Dawn's shoulder.

M: You are learning quickly, child. As The Anointed, you have great power and the heir to my throne.

AO: I have a good teacher. There is no doubt to me that you will rise, kill the Slayer, open the Hellmouth, and rule the world.

The Master and The Anointed One smiled appreciatively at each other.


	2. Season Two

Season Two

Sunnydale High, Day

Glory, Caleb, and Heinrich were gathered around a table in the library (Heinrich was sitting in the shadows to avoid the sunlight streaming in through the window).

GD: The Anointed One?

H: The Master's second in command or as I like to call her, 'The Annoying One'. She was sired only last year. It was part of a prophecy.

C: The Codex?

H: Yeah.

GD: What prophecy?

C: Oh, it is very obscure, by all accounts. It just says something about The Slayer, The Anointed One and The Master being involved in a battle with a great evil. It's very vague.

GD: So, Heinrich, what else do you know about The Master's groupies?

H: Well, I told you about Dawn already. Let's see, there's Rupert Giles. He used to be a college professor and very intelligent. But after he was sired, he became . . . simpler. Kinda dumb, actually. I'm not sure why The Master even keeps him around. Then there's Willow. She's technically third in the chain of command. She's been around for about four hundred years and she's an amateur in dark witchcraft as well.

GD: Wait! A vampire who can perform magic?

C: That is quite astounding.

H: Yeah, but she's only an amateur. She can only do small stuff: Nothing to worry about.

The Master's Lair

The Master paced before her remaining minions, Xander, Willow, Giles, and Dawn: The Anointed One.

M: I need to find another way to rise and get rid of that Slayer and Heinrich.

Willow stepped forward.

WR: Master? I have a suggestion: You know how I've been studying dark magic?

M: Yes.

WR: Well, I could gather some other witches and cast a curse on the Slayer.

The Master looked thoughtful.

M: A curse, you say?

XH: (To Willow) You can do magic? How many other damn things can you do that I don't know about?

WR: It was very recent, alright?

RG: So we must figure out the best way to curse them!

XH: (Rolling his eyes) No, really?

M: Silence! (To Willow) What can you and your _friends _do?

WR: We can cast curses, like I said.

XH: Why don't we cast a curse that can take away her powers!

WR: This is the Vampire Slayer we're talking about! I can't just take away her powers! It's a power that has been passed down for generations. If someone could take it away from her, they would have done it a long time ago.

AO: How about doing something that not only gets rid of an enemy, but _gains_ us an ally as well.

M: Ah!

XH: What? What do you know?

AO: Think about it this way: Who is the Slayer's most helpful ally?

RG: Um . . . her mom?

XH: Heinrich! That vampire with a soul!

AO: Yes. And what is his main flaw?

RG: Uh . . . ?

XH: He has a soul?

Willow clapped her hands together excitedly.

WR: Yes! We can reverse the curse that gave Heinrich his soul-

M: -and turn him back to his original evil self.

WR: Perfect!

M: Yes indeed. Willow, summon your friends here and get started.

Cemetery, Night

Glory and Heinrich patrolled one of Sunnydale's cemeteries for fresh vampires.

GD: So, have you ever faced The Master before?

H: Not physically, but we have met before. You never would guess who she really was by looking at her.

GD: She doesn't look five hundred?

H: Well, no. Vampires look the way they did when they were turned forever.

GD: You didn't.

H: Yes, well, I've been undead for nine hundred years. There comes a time when you've been demonic for so long, it takes you over. (Hastily) Your appearance, I mean, not your personality.

GD: Did you have a different personality when you didn't have your soul?

Heinrich hesitated.

H: Yes. I did. But I promise you will _never_ see that side of me.

The Master's Lair

The Master, Giles, Dawn, and Xander stood off to the side as Willow and two other dark sorceresses, Jenny Calendar and Tara MaClay, surrounded a circle of candles and other magical ingredients.

XH: So, what? We just stand here and wait for something to happen?

AO: Hold your tongue, young one.

XH: Who are you to call _me_ young? You only have a year over me as vampire, but I was alive six years longer than you as a human! So technically, _you'r_e the young one!

M: Be _quiet_, idiots!

They watched as Willow, Tara, and Jenny started chanting in Latin with their arms raised.

RG: (Whispering) Are those other two vampires too?

M: No, they're just dark sorceresses that Willow had trained with.

At that moment, all three witches' eyes turned black and a bright light flashed throughout the room. Everyone covered their eyes. Then the light faded away and the witch named Jenny turned to face them as their eyes returned to normal.

JC: It is done. The vampire's soul has been released.

Cemetery, Night

Heinrich gasped and doubled over. Glory stared at him in alarm.

GD: Are you alright? What's going on?

H: (Clutching his chest) Oh . . . no. Go! Get out of-ahhhhhh!

Heinrich collapsed onto the ground. Glory ran and turned him over.

GD: Heinrich?

Without warning, Heinrich sprang back to his feet and punched her hard in the face. She recoiled backward, clutching her bleeding nose and staring indignantly at Heinrich.

GD: What the hell was that for? I just asked if you were-

She stopped dead, seeing the look on Heinrich's face. He was leering at her.

H: I'm just great. Thanks for asking.

He punched her again, but this time Glory caught his fist and flung him over her head so that he landed sprawled on the ground again.

GD: Is this some kind of joke or something? What happened to you?

H: (Getting to his feet) I don't know exactly. But whatever it was, it was _good_. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to catch up on some unfinished business.

He ran away into the darkness. Glory stared after him, appalled.

Sunnydale High, Day

Glory burst into the library where Caleb was engrossed in some books. He looked up as she entered.

C: Ah, Glory. Good, I wanted to talk to-

GD: Caleb, something bad has happened.

C: Bad?

GD: I think Heinrich lost his soul.

C: What?

GD: Last night, we were patrolling for vampires, then he bent over in pain, told me to get away from him, and then he attacked me.

C: Oh, sweet lord. This _is _bad.

GD: That's what I'd just said! What do we do?

C: We can't do anything until we know for sure what happened to him.

At that moment, a girl walked in through the library doors. Glory recognized her as Amy Madison, one of the girls from her classes.

AM: I think I can help you.

C: I'm sorry, but who exactly are you, miss?

GD: (Observing Amy closely) Her name's Amy. She's one of my classmates.

C: Oh, well, I'm sorry Amy, but I don't think you know what we're-

AM: I know how Heinrich lost his soul.

Glory and Caleb stared at her.

GD: You know about . . . everything?

AM: If you mean vampires and the Hellmouth, yeah. I'm a witch.

C: Oh, well, alright then. Please sit down. Tell us what you know.

Amy sat down facing Glory and Caleb across the table.

AM: Well, I used to be part of this coven, involving dark magick.

C: You're a dark witch?

AM: (Hurriedly) No! I mean . . . I _was_ involved with them, but I . . . I'm not evil or anything! I left them as soon as I found out what they had become. They were just a standard witch coven when I'd joined, but then they . . . changed.

GD: Your whole coven turned evil?

AM: Pretty much overnight. Anyway, right before I left, I overheard three of the members discussing removing a vampire's soul yesterday.

C: Was one of them named Willow, by any chance?

AM: Yeah. It was actually her idea. Why?

GD: She's a vampire too.

AM: Oh. Well, that explains why she only attended the night meetings. I never liked her anyway.

C: So, Willow and these other two witches planned to remove Heinrich's soul?

AM: Yeah, and they've succeeded. I felt the magic current from their spell. Dark magick leaves obvious traces; like supernatural ripples in the air, you know?

GD: (Uncertainly) Sure. How do you know about Heinrich, anyway?

AM: They mentioned his name while discussing the plan.

GD: Oh. So, can you help us?

AM: Maybe. What do you need?

GD: Well, can you restore his soul?

AM: Oh, no. Not by myself. You would need at least three witches to restore or remove someone's soul. It's pretty powerful stuff.

GD: Well then, what _can_ we do?

C: Calm down, Glory. I'm sure we'll come up with something. Now, who would want to remove Heinrich's soul?

GD: Well, since that Willow is involved, I've got a good idea.

The Master's Lair

XH: So now that Heinrich has no soul, what makes you think he'll want to help us out?

M: He will undoubtedly want to kill the Slayer. All vampires want that girl dead.

WR: Well, from what I know about him when he was soulless, Heinrich was very brutal and a savage killer, but also not big on teamwork: very independent-like.

XH: (Incredulously) You're a bookworm too?

WR: No, I just do a lot of reading.

XH: That _is _being a bookworm!

The other two witches, Jenny and Tara, walked up to The Master in her throne.

TM: (Harshly) So are we done here now?

WR: Yeah. You guys can go now if you want.

At that moment, Giles came flying out of the entrance to the tunnel, where he had been standing sentinel, and landed hard on the ground. The Master rose from her throne, Willow and Dawn flanking her, as Heinrich strode into the room.

M: Ah, our newest recruit has finally arrived.

Heinrich approached The Master and stopped in front of her.

M: Welcome, Heinrich. I trust you feel better now without your soul holding you down?

Heinrich nodded slowly, not taking his eyes off The Master's.

H: Not that I don't appreciate what you did, but I must ask: Why _did_ you do it?

M: Well, I figured you would appreciate a bargain. I just freed you from your soul, so now, in exchange, you will work for _me._

H: I _will_?

XH: (Eagerly, looking from The Master to Heinrich) Uh oh.

H: _I _have a good four hundred years on _you._ _I_ am much more powerful than _you_. _I_ should be in _your_ place!

AO: How dare you! This is your master and savior you are talking to!

H: Oh, shut up, Annoying One.

Dawn looked ready to rip Heinrich's head off, but The Master held her back.

M: Are you challenging me?

H: No, I am _taking_ your throne.

M: Very well then. You have just made the most unwise decision of your life.

She punched Heinrich in the face. He staggered backward. Giles, who had just gotten back to his feet, watched in fascination as Heinrich knocked The Master back into her throne with a powerful uppercut.

After a few minutes of fighting, it was obvious that Heinrich had the upper hand. The Master slumped unconscious to the ground. Xander and Giles scrambled into the tunnel. Willow grabbed Tara and followed. As Jenny made to hurry after them, Heinrich grabbed her and snapped her neck. Leaving her body where he dropped it, Heinrich settled himself down into the throne. Dawn crouched down beside The Master and tried to rouse her.

H: (To Dawn) Aren't you going to run away like the rats your comrades are?

AO: I'm not leaving her.

H: Well, I guess you're going to die along with her, then.

Sunnydale High, Night

AM: I told you, I can't restore his soul on my own! Channeling too much magic is dangerous for humans. It's fatal to them. I've heard stories about people who absorbed or channeled too much magic within themselves and . . . they . . . well, best case scenario, they ended up in comas for the rest of their lives. Others have died, burned themselves out from the inside.

C: Gosh.

GD: Sounds like magic is a risky business.

AM: Not really; as long as you can control it properly.

C: Well, are there any witches from the coven that you could persuade to help us?

AM: Nope. They all hate me. I'm too _good_ for them, if you catch my meaning.

GD: Caleb, what was Heinrich like before when he was evil?

C: (Rubbing his eyes) Well, according to my studies, he was dominant and independent. He never worked with anyone and wanted complete control over everything.

GD: So, just your basic 'I want to rule the world' type of guy then?

C: Essentially, yes.

GD: So we have to figure out what he's planning to do and how to stop him.

C: (Softly) We may have to kill him, you know.

GD: (Alarmed) What? No! We can't kill him! What happened to him wasn't his fault!

WR: No, it was _ours_.

Glory, Caleb, and Amy jumped to their feet in alarm.

Standing in front of the library doors was a group of four people. Among them were Willow and the spiky haired boy who had attacked Glory and Heinrich last year. Behind them was a man with a badly cut mullet, and a girl who had on black eyeliner and was dressed in black witch-like garb.

C: Can I . . . help you?

GD: (Staring at them with distaste) They're vampires. Those two in front are Willow and the other guy who attacked me and Heinrich before.

XH: '_The other guy'_? It's Xander!

AM: Tara?

TM: (Sneering) Oh, look. It's Amy the traitor.

AM: You're working for vampires and _I'm_ the traitor?

C: What are you all doing here?

WR: We're here to form a truce. Heinrich has taken over. We want his soul restored. It's the only way to stop him.

C: So what do you need us for?

TM: The spell to return a soul requires three witches. Jenny is dead.

AM: Oh, so you need the _traitor's_ help?

WR: Heinrich is much harder to kill when he's evil. We have no choice.

GD: How do we know we can trust you?

WR: Look, The Master and The Anointed One are stuck with him.

GD: The prophecy . . .

WR&C: What?

GD: The Slayer, The Master, The Anointed One, and a great evil, remember? Okay, if you guys are serious, here's what we should do-

XH: I'm sorry, but who put _you_ in charge?

GD: I'm the Slayer. And you came to _me_ for help.

WR: She has a point, you know.

Xander glared at her.

XH: Fine.

GD: As I was saying, you all stay here and prepare the spell. I'll go hold off Heinrich in case he tries to stop you.

C: What? But Glory, he's too strong for you.

GD: Not if I have The Master and The Annoy-, sorry, Anointed One backing me up.

XH: (Laughing) You think they'll help you?

GD: They have to. They have to help me in order to stay alive.

She turned to Caleb and Amy.

GD: Keep an eye on them. In case they try something while I'm gone.

C: Don't worry, we'll be careful.

Glory nodded. Then she turned, walked past the evil foursome and out of the library.

The Master's Lair

Heinrich observed the apparently fourteen-year-old child attempting to pull The Master out of her mystical barrier with amusement.

H: You could run, you know.

AO: I'm not leaving without her!

GD: Well, you don't have to.

Glory had appeared at the entrance. Heinrich jumped off the throne. Dawn looked up at Glory.

AO: The Slayer?

GD: Yep. Your buddies sent me.

Looking down on the child and the blonde girl on the floor, Glory found it amazing that she was looking at the master of all vampires and her second in command.

H: Come back for round two, have you?

GD: In a way, yeah.

The Master stirred and woke up. She saw Dawn next to her, staring at something behind her. She turned and saw Glory.

M: Slayer?

Glory nodded.

M: So, we finally meet. (To Dawn) Why is she here?

AO: She is going to help us kill Heinrich.

M: Really? I would have thought that she would've wanted to restore his soul.

GD: I did. But now I have no choice.

H: So, a threesome, is it? How interesting. Of course, it will not make any difference.

The Slayer, The Master, and The Anointed One stood and faced Heinrich.

M: (To Glory) Once we kill him, you're next, you know.

GD: Yeah, yeah.

Sunnydale High, Night

Willow, Tara, and Amy stood in the same circle that had been formed before. The others stood to the side.

XH: (To Caleb) Can you believe that all the powers here are girls: The Slayer, The Master, the witches? Isn't it disgusting?

C: Not at all. I have the utmost respect for women who wield power. I find it rather inspiring, actually.

XH: You're insane.

C: And you're evil.

In front of them, the three witches began to chant together in Latin . . .

The Master's Lair

Glory, The Master, and Dawn charged. Heinrich punched Glory and Dawn back before they even got to him. The Master swung her leg up to smack Heinrich in the chin, but he bent backward so that she flew over his head and landed behind him. As he turned to face her, Dawn jumped up and grabbed Heinrich around the neck from behind while Glory circled him to face him next to The Master. Heinrich flung Dawn off him and aimed a punch at Glory, but she ducked under his arm and kicked him in the side. He grunted and blocked another blow from The Master. Then Dawn ran up again as Glory went flying backward past her. Heinrich grabbed Dawn around the neck.

H: I've had enough of you annoying little gnat.

He flung her into one of the torches hanging on the wall. She caught fire and ran around the chamber screaming until she combusted into a small pile of dust.

M: NO!

The Master lunged at Heinrich, but he knocked her back easily. Then as he turned on Glory, he staggered and bent over.

H: No! Not this again-Ahhhhh!

He straightened up and his eyes glowed momentarily orange. He looked around in confusion.

H: How did I get down here?

GD: Heinrich! You're back!

The Master snarled in anger, looking at Glory.

M: You! You tricked me!

GD: How? I just helped save your life.

M: You said we would kill him! You didn't say you were going to restore him!

GD: Come on, did you really think I would? Besides, you have your minions to thank for this.

H: Glory, what happened? (He sees The Master) Oh, hello Buffy.

The Master gave him a deadly look for daring to address her as such.

GD: (Hurriedly) Let's get out of here, shall we?

She and Heinrich hurried out of the chamber and into the tunnel.

M: No you don't!

The Master tried to follow them, but was thrown back by the Hellmouth's barrier.

GD: Sorry, no access beyond this point.

Glory and Heinrich ran down the tunnel, leaving The Master trapped and seething behind them.

Sunnydale High, Day

H: Well, I'm glad that I didn't do too much damage at least.

He, Glory, Caleb, and Amy sat in the library.

GD: Well, if anything, you actually helped us out. I mean, you killed The Anointed One and one of the dark witches. Plus you seriously pissed off The Master.

H: Yeah, I guess. But technically _I _didn't do anything.

GD: (To Amy) Are you alright?

AM: Yeah, I'm just . . . I feel a little drained after that re-ensouling spell.

C: Well, obviously. It was a big spell, after all.

H: Sorry.

AM: Why? You didn't remove your own soul, did you? I'm fine really.

H: Okay. I just hate that this had to happen.

AM: Aren't you worried that they might try to do that again?

C: I doubt it. I don't think The Master will want to be overthrown or embarrassed like that again.

GD: And that prophecy came true, too: The Master, The Anointed One, and I faced off against a great evil.

H: Wait! You mean that the great evil in the prophecy was _me_ without a soul?

C: Apparently. But that's over now. Plus, The Anointed One is gone, so that should be a terrible blow against The Master.

The Master's Lair

Willow patted The Master, who was slumped in her throne, on the shoulder sympathetically. Xander and Giles stood back, whispering to each other.

XH: Personally, I'm glad she's gone.

RG: I can't believe we actually worked with our enemies.

WR: Is there anything I can do, master?

M: No. Nothing can fix this. Leave. Now.

Willow backed away and gestured at Xander and Giles to follow her. The Master stared down at the pile of dust that had once been her second in command.

M: That girl _must _die.


	3. Season Three

Season Three

City Hall, Night

Mayor Richard Wilkins sat behind his desk, looking out of his office window. He had only been elected mayor last year, but he was finally ready to enforce his opinions on this pitiful town at last. Someone knocked at his door.

MW: Come in.

His secretary, Faith Lehane, walked in. She looked nervous to be in his presence.

FL: Um, sir? Y-your appointment to visit the High School is in two days-just a reminder.

Faith flinched, as though expecting him to yell at her. But he just continued to look out his window.

MW: Very well. I shall prepare a speech for the children's graduation ceremony. It will be the perfect opportunity to encourage young impressionable minds to support my views. Someone has to enforce order on this chaotic little town. You have work to do. Go.

Faith scurried out of the office. Wilkins sighed and leaned back in his seat. Faith was as wimpy as a five year old. He really needed a new secretary soon. He could tell that she had no big future ahead of her. He, on the other hand . . . All that had mattered to him his whole life was power, to be in a position of power, and now he had it at last.

Sunnydale High, Day

Glory, Caleb, and Amy sat in the library.

C: Principal Snyder has announced this morning that the Mayor will be attending your graduation ceremony in a few days.

GD: Is that bad?

C: Well, the Mayor is openly power hungry and wants to change a few laws to his benefit.

AM: In other words, he's like a dictator?

C: Yes.

GD: Do you think he's evil? Like demonicly evil?

C: I'm not sure. But just because he is vindictive and cruel doesn't mean that he's a demon. Nevertheless, we should keep an eye on him.

At that moment, a man walked into the library. He looked scruffy and jumbled; like he had just gotten out of bed after realizing he was late.

C: (Uncertainly) Can I help you, sir?

WW: (Shakily) Y-yes. My name is Wesley Wyndam-Pryce. I am the new librarian.

C: (Taken aback) Excuse me?

WW: Mr. Snyder hired me to be your assistant.

C: An _assistant_? I don't think I need one, thank you.

WW: Mr. Snyder insisted.

Wesley walked further into the room and looked over at Glory and Amy sitting at the table.

WW: Oh, hello there. Who are you?

GD: (Friendly, but wary) I'm Glory and this is my friend Amy.

WW: Students?

AM: Yep.

WW: (Distractedly) Good . . . good . . .

As Wesley turned back to Caleb, Amy shot Glory an incredulous look.

WW: (Awkwardly) Alright . . . well . . . I g-guess that's it. I officially start work tomorrow. I'll just be . . .

He turned abruptly and left. After the double doors had closed behind him, Caleb turned to Glory and Amy.

AM: What was that about?

C: I don't know. Poor fellow looks like he just came off the street.

GD: I know. Why would Snyder choose a guy like _that_ as your assistant?

C: I'm not sure. Now we'll have to be more discreet about our supernatural issues. We can't let Wesley find out what we really do here.

AM: Didn't it seem like something was bothering him, too?

GD: All I know for sure is that there's something about him I don't like at all.

The Master's Lair

M: The Mayor? Seriously?

The Master looked in amusement and exaggeration at Xander and Willow, who had just expressed their concerns.

WR: Yeah, I mean, he's always been pretty intent on ruling the town.

M: There _is_ a demonic power waiting to rise, but it is _not_ the Mayor.

XH: How do you know? Have you met him?

M: Actually, yes. I do know this power. I ran across him a hundred years ago.

WR: What is he?

M: A human who made a deal with a demon to become immortal and then eventually ascend into a powerful demon himself a hundred years later. All he had to do in return was maintain the demonic population in Sunnydale and keep some promises.

XH: (Slowly) So, it's somebody in a position of power . . . who managed to stay in office for a hundred years without anyone noticing . . . and has influence over other demons?

M: Finally caught up?

WR: Who is it, then?

M: I think it will be more fun to let you two figure it out on your own.

Sunnydale High, Day

The next morning, Glory walked into the library and saw Caleb sitting at the table.

GD: Hey. Did you find anything new about-

She broke off as she saw Wesley come out of Caleb's office. He still looked extremely disheveled.

WW: Oh, h-hello Miss Dagon.

GD: Hello.

WW: I guess you must really like it here.

GD: Yep.

WW: Good . . . that's good . . . well, s-shall we get started Caleb?

C: What? Oh, yes. Glory, don't you have class?

WW: Hold on a minute. I know who you all are.

On her way out the door, Glory stopped dead. She turned to face him.

GD: What?

WW: You're the Slayer and Caleb's your Watcher.

GD: What . . . how . . . ?

WW: I was a Watcher before. I am aware of the supernatural world.

C: Does Snyder know?

WW: No. I . . . convinced him.

GD: Why are you really here then?

WW: To help you take down the upcoming evil.

C: Oh. What do you know?

WW: Only that something is supposed to rise soon: A demon. About a hundred years old.

GD: Is The Master vampire involved?

WW: I don't think so. This demon is not planning on opening the Hellmouth.

Amy walked into the library.

AM: Hey, did you find out-

She stopped dead, seeing Wesley.

GD: It's okay, he knows everything.

AM: What? How?

WW: I was a Watcher before.

AM: _Was_? Aren't you still?

WW: (Anxiously) Um . . . uh, actually, I j-just remembered . . . I have an appointment with . . . er . . . with Principal Snyder! Yes, urgent meeting. I r-really must be . . .

He hurriedly backed out of the room. Amy looked over at Glory and Caleb.

AM: What is _up_ with him?

Out in the hallway, Wesley walked into Principal Snyder's office. Snyder looked up as Wesley closed the door behind him.

PS: Well?

WW: Well, um, the resistance, in addition t-to the Slayer and her Watcher, is a girl named Amy and, apparently, a v-vampire with a soul named Heinrich. I overheard them talking about him before.

PS: A vampire with a soul? Interesting . . .

WW: They currently suspect the Mayor.

PS: (Chuckling) Yes, he does have that heir, doesn't he? Very useful to have him floating around, intimidating everyone. Do they know when it will happen?

WW: N-no. They are still debating it. Should I l-lead them in the wrong direction?

PS: No. For now I want the vampire. I want his soul.

The Master's Lair

WR: The Principal! That's who it is!

M: Congratulations. It only took you five hours to figure it out.

XH: You know, I always wondered . . . I saw pictures of his father and grandfather in the records room before I was turned. They look a lot like the same guy.

M: That's because they _are_ the same guy. He stayed in office for a hundred years by pretending to be his son and grandson.

WR: So, where do we stand with this guy? Do we help him? Stop him?

M: Neither. I know that he will not help us, and the outcome of his plans will not influence us at all. As always, our priorities are the Slayer and the opening of the Hellmouth.

Sunnydale High, Night

Heinrich walked through the school hallway toward the library. There was supposed to be a group meeting tonight, according to Glory. He rounded the corner and walked right into Wesley.

WW: Oh! I'm so sorry, sir, I didn't-

He stopped and stared at Heinrich with revulsion. Heinrich rolled his eyes.

H: Yeah, I get that reaction all the time. Who are you?

WW: W-Wesley Wyndam-Pryce: Ex-Watcher and assistant librarian. You're Heinrich, I assume?

H: (Suspiciously) Yes.

WW: Good . . . good . . . I have to tell you something important. Come with me.

Heinrich followed Wesley down the hallway. He had a nagging feeling that something was wrong here. Wesley stopped outside the principal's office.

WW: In here.

H: Why?

WW: It's empty. We c-can't be overheard.

H: (Eyeing Wesley in slight concern) Are you alright?

WW: Yes . . . yes, of course. Please . . .

Wesley gestured at the office door. Heinrich hesitated, then entered it. At once, he was hit by something and floated up into the air, immobilized. Looking down, he saw a shaman with his hands raised standing in front of Principal Snyder, who sat at his desk.

PS: Hello there, vampire.

H: So, it's been _you_ the whole time.

PS: Very astute.

H: So your pleasant personality is only a cover up for your true ambitions?

PS: (Astonished) What? No, of course not! I don't believe in being cruel or insulting to anyone. All I want is to become a pure blood demon and rule the world.

H: You'll have to hurt some people to accomplish that, you know.

PS: Well, of course. But I won't kill any more people than I have to. Plus, all that blood to clean up afterwards. (He shudders) I'd like to avoid that messy pick-up.

H: Why are you interested in me? How did you even know I was here?

PS: As I'm sure you must know by now, I had some inside help.

He gestured over at Wesley, who stood behind Heinrich, looking proud. Heinrich glared at him.

H: _Traitor_. I knew something wasn't right about you as soon as I saw you.

WW: Actually, I'm n-not a traitor. I was never on _your _side. I left the Watcher's Council. They were pompous fools. My loyalties are to a higher power now.

Wesley bowed in respect to Snyder, who got up from behind his desk.

PS: But, of course, since you now know about us both, we'll have to take away your soul.

H: Oh, right. You brought in a shaman and captured me to _talk,_ originally?

PS: Okay, kudos, but I'm still taking your soul.

H: That's not a good idea. Me with no soul has . . . consequences.

PS: You mean you being evil? That's the whole idea, my friend. Plus, you know, one less good guy to worry about. Maybe even an extra addition to our mission, perhaps?

H: (Warningly) Don't. You'll regret it.

PS: Please be quiet. You don't want to be un-courteous in front of your future leader.

Snyder nodded at the shaman, who began to chant. Heinrich yelled in pain . . .

Meanwhile, as Glory, Caleb, and Amy waited for Heinrich and Wesley to join their meeting in the library, Amy froze. Caleb and Glory looked at her in concern.

C: What is it?

AM: I feel . . . dark magick again . . . like before . . . Heinrich!

GD: What?

Amy bolted out of the library, Glory and Caleb sprinting after her.

Back in Snyder's office, the Shaman extended his hand to Heinrich's chest. Then Wesley got knocked sideways by the door flying open behind him; Amy had burst in, followed by Glory and Caleb.

GD: Heinrich!

She kicked the shaman away from Heinrich, causing the spell binding him to break. Heinrich fell on top of the shaman, causing them both to crash into Snyder's desk, breaking it and sending papers and bits of wood everywhere. Wesley got up and ran around them to Snyder, who had been knocked backward away from his broken desk, and helped him to his feet.

PS: (Brushing himself off indignantly) Oh, now look what you've done! My office is a terrible mess!

GD: Principal Snyder? It's _you_?

PS: Yes, Glory.

C: And Wesley?

PS: I had to send an inside man to find out what you knew and what your plans to deal with it were.

Heinrich got to his feet (The shaman lay unconscious on the floor).

WW: How d-did you know what we were doing?

AM: Witches can detect dark spells being cast.

H: I told you it was a mistake to do that.

PS: (To Wesley) You didn't say that there was a _witch_ amongst them!

As Wesley stuttered something apologetic, Caleb took out a dagger from his pocket and flung it at Snyder. It struck him in the chest, but he barely reacted.

PS: My goodness! That was uncalled for!

He wrenched the knife out of his chest. Then his wound instantly healed itself. Everyone stared as he took out a napkin and cleaned off the blade of the knife.

PS: You see, I'm what you might call, impervious: can't be harmed in any way, at least not until the ascension starts.

Glory made a move toward Snyder, but Caleb held out his arm.

C: Not now. We need to plan this out.

GD: But . . .

H: He's right. We can't kill him now. We need to figure this out first.

Glory backed out of the room, glaring at Snyder.

PS: I'm very excited to see what you come up with to try and stop me.

He tossed Caleb's knife back to him. Caleb caught it, then he, Heinrich, and Amy followed Glory out of the office. Wesley looked at Snyder.

WW: W-what now? They know all about us and what will happen.

PS: Let them try to stop me. My plan is unbreakable. Once I'm a demon, not even the Slayer can stop me. Shame it had to be Glory though: Such a nice young lady, lots of potential. I'd hate to have to kill her.

Sunnydale High, Day

A few days later, on the day of Glory and Amy's graduation, they, Caleb, and Heinrich sat in the library. Caleb was polishing his dagger which, as he had told them earlier, he carried with him everywhere as a safety precaution.

GD: So, Principal Snyder became immortal, stayed principal for a hundred pretending to be his descendants, and will turn into a demon today. Is there anything else we should know about him?

C: Well, now that we know when and who is becoming a demon and the circumstances why, I've looked into some books on ascensions. Apparently, he has to feed once he is transformed. A whole group of teenagers would be ideal.

AM: We can't let him eat the class!

GD: We're not going to. Do we know what kind of demon he will turn into?

C: Um, yes. Sort of. I don't know the species, but I do know that pure blood demons are very different from regular demons and vampires.

GD: How?

C: Well, they're bigger, for one thing.

AM: So what can we do?

C: I'm not sure just yet.

H: While he was holding me captive, he mentioned an army of Fyarl demons. He's going to use them to prevent the kids from escaping.

GD: I can't believe the enemy was so close to us this whole time! And Wesley! I knew we couldn't trust him!

H: We need to think of something fast.

There was a pause.

GD: I think I might have a crazy, yet workable idea . . .

Graduation Ceremony, Day

The Sunnydale High senior class, dressed in red graduation robes, lined up before a stage set outside on the school campus. On the stage sat all the faculty, including Principal Snyder and Wesley. Glory settled into her front row seat. She kept going over the plan in her head. It was crazy, but it just might work. Caleb sat up on stage with the other teachers, trying not to look at Snyder or Wesley. Amy sat down next to Glory.

AM: Feeling alright?

GD: I will when this is over.

Principal Snyder had gotten to his feet and silence fell rather quickly.

PS: Congratulations to the class of 1999! You have all proved to be smart and potentially successful young people. Before we hand out your hard-earned diplomas, I would like you to please help me in welcoming our distinguished guest of honor, The Mayor of Sunnydale: Richard Wilkins.

The students applauded unenthusiastically. Snyder sat back down as Wilkins stood up and approached the microphone. He looked very menacing. His secretary, Faith, stood just behind him, wringing her hands nervously.

MW: Hello students. What an amazing day this is for you. You have a lot to be proud of.

His tone made it clear that he didn't care one bit about their success in school or their feelings about it.

MW: However, this is also an important day for _me_. As mayor of Sunnydale, I will be placing some new laws down starting today.

Glory was watching Snyder. He was watching Wilkins intently. Wesley had gotten to his feet and moved off the stage.

MW: The first new law I will place down will be-

PS: Excuse me, Mr. Mayor, but this isn't about you, you know. It's about the children's accomplishments.

Wilkins looked at Snyder in outrage.

MW: Excuse _me_, Principal Snyder, but _I _am-

Snyder started laughing. He looked skyward and raised his arms into the air.

PS: It's time! It's my time! At last!

MW: What are you-?

Snyder exploded. Or rather, it looked like he had. Then it became clear that Snyder had changed into his demon form: A gigantic snake-demon. The other teachers screamed and ran off the stage. Snyder roared in either pleasure or anger, Glory couldn't tell, nor did she much care at the moment. Caleb dived off the stage, barely avoiding Snyder's tail.

GD: NOW!

She, Amy, and all the other students ripped off their robes, revealing crossbows and axes and flamethrowers. On Glory's command, they fired arrows and aimed flamethrowers up at the giant snake. Snyder recoiled, but didn't back down. The Mayor stood frozen, gazing up at Snyder in anger.

MW: What is this? This is unacceptable! This is not how this was supposed to go! This is _my_ time! You cannot-

Snyder's head dived down and the Mayor disappeared: Snyder had eaten him whole. Meanwhile, Caleb had tackled Wesley and the two of them were engaged in a hand to hand fist fight next to the stage. Caleb was obviously much better at this than Wesley, even though Wesley had been trained to fight demons just as he had under Watcher training. Wesley retreated toward a dead student and picked up the axe he had dropped. He swung wildly, but Caleb dodged his blows easily. Years of training as a Watcher had clearly helped him become a decent fighter. Then one of Wesley's swings finally made contact. The blade of the axe cut into Caleb's shoulder. He yelled in pain and fell to his knees. Wesley stood over Caleb, who was clutching his shoulder, and raised the axe over his head.

WW: I actually like you, Caleb. But I h-have to do this.

Before Wesley could swing the axe, Caleb reached into his pocket, took out his knife (the same one he had stabbed Snyder with before) and jammed it into Wesley's gut. Wesley's eyes widened with shock and pain.

C: Unfortunately, I'm afraid that since you tried to kill us all, I don't like _you_ at all.

Wesley fell to the ground and lay still. Caleb put away his dagger. He couldn't believe that he had just killed a human being. But then, it was only in self defense, he reasoned.

Looking around, he saw that most of the Fyarl demons had been taken down by Amy and the other students. Glory, meanwhile, was yelling up at the giant snake-demon.

GD: Hey!

Snyder looked down at her.

GD: You want me dead, don't you? Well, come get me!

She ran toward the school. Snyder snarled and slithered after her. She ran into the building. Snyder smashed his way through the doors and followed her down the hallway. She burst into the library, rushed past the explosives she and the others had placed in there, and out the back exit. Snyder burst into the library and stopped, seeing the explosives.

PS: Oh my goodness gracious.

Glory hurtled toward Heinrich, who had hidden in the cover of some trees near the building and was holding the trigger mechanism for the explosives. As she joined him, he activated it.

The library exploded, causing glass and wood to fly everywhere. Then the rest of the school followed.

Caleb looked over his shoulder at the sound. He couldn't believe that they had just blown up the school! And that he had _agreed_ to it! But then, it did stop Snyder. Turning his back on the school, he saw Amy coming up to him, looking battle scared, but alive.

AM: You alright?

C: Yes, I believe so.

AM: Oh, god!

C: (Startled) What?

Amy pointed at Caleb's injury, looking horrified.

AM: Your shoulder! It's almost completely cut off!

C: Don't exaggerate. It's a relatively minor injury.

AM: Where's Glory?

GD: Over here!

Caleb and Amy turned to see her walking over to them away from the flaming inferno that was the school.

C: Glad to see that you survived.

GD: Yeah, you guys too.

C: That was a crazy plan you know: telling the class about Snyder and the demonic.

AM: (To Glory) Yes. Good thing Snyder and the Mayor are dead, or they would've both had your head for this.

GD: Speaking of crazy, what happened to Wesley?

C: (Curtly) Dead.

GD: Oh.

AM: Is Heinrich okay? I mean, he didn't fry up did he?

GD: No, he's waiting where he is until the sun sets.

They turned and looked at the burned up remains of Sunnydale High.

GD: So . . . now what?

C: Aren't you both going to college next year?

GD: Yes, actually, we are. We both got into UC Sunnydale.

C: Oh, good for you. You're not planning to blow up that too, are you?

GD: (Rolling her eyes) No. We're planning to have a nice, quiet, peaceful year; if that's at all possible.

Later that night, after the fire crews had left, one lone figure was lying on the ground all by itself. Faith stirred as she heard footsteps approaching. She sat up, trying to ignore the stab wound in her chest and the blood running down the side of her face. Her involvement in the battle had been brief and barely noticeable.

A spiky haired boy of around sixteen dressed in a white tee shirt and black leather approached her.

FL: (Weakly) H-help me! I'm . . . dying!

The boy bent down and raised Faith off the ground, supporting her in his arms.

XH: Don't worry. I won't let you die.

His face morphed into yellow eyes and fangs. Faith stared up at him in horror.

XH: I'll make sure that you live . . .


	4. Season Four

Season Four

UC Sunnydale, Day

Glory and Amy got up and left their first class of the day.

AM: Well, that was quite an interesting lecture. Didn't you think?

GD: (Wearily) The insides of my eyeballs weren't that interesting to me.

AM: I can tell you what you missed. I can lend you my notes, too.

GD: Yeah, thanks-whoops!

She had bumped into someone who she recognized as the Teacher Aide from their class.

GD: I'm so sorry, I didn't . . .

TA: It's okay, no problem. Hey, you two are from the class, right?

AM: Yeah. I'm Amy, and this is my friend Glory.

AW: Nice to meet you both. I'm Adam Walsh.

AM: Well, we'd better go. We have another class to attend. Good to meet you.

AW: Same here.

Glory and Amy walked downstairs as Adam went the other way.

AM: He was cute, wasn't he?

GD: I dunno, maybe.

They continued to gossip about Adam until they reached their next class.

The Master's Lair

M: So, how is she adjusting?

XH: Pretty well, actually. She's a little . . . strange right now, but she's really enjoying the whole killing thing.

The Master scrutinized Xander.

M: That's wonderful. Do you know why I let you do this?

XH: I thought it was to give me the opportunity to train someone.

M: Partly. But also because I need more help. You've never sired anyone before. It is an important quality of being a vampire. She will have a connection to you, just as you do toward Willow.

XH: Yeah, but I'm not into Willow like that.

M: That's not how you used to think.

XH: I was only just turned! I've been a vampire for four years now. I've wised up since then.

M: That's true. You are now one of my strongest minions.

XH: Can you say 'accomplice' or 'warrior' instead of 'minion'? It makes me sound so . . . unimpressive.

M: You are my minion. You all are. I have allowed you to sire someone of your own. I am allowing you to guide and train her. You should be grateful I allowed you even that much.

Xander looked like he wanted to punch her, but thought better of it and simply nodded.

M: Now, why don't you take her outside? Do some killing?

UC Sunnydale, Night

Heinrich wandered around the darkened campus. According to Caleb, this was as big of a hot spot for vampires as the high school.

A scream made Heinrich stop. It sounded like someone was being attacked. He ran in the direction of the screaming. Sure enough, a girl was struggling to get out of the grip of a black haired female vampire. Heinrich ran up and kicked the vampire away from the girl. The girl screamed again, seeing Heinrich's face, horrified.

H: Go. Get out of here. Now!

The girl wasted no time in running away from what would probably be the most terrifying night of her life. The female vampire got up and pointed at Heinrich.

FL: (Sounding like a five-year-old) Xander! That guy ruined my kill!

Heinrich turned. Standing next to the vampire girl was another vampire he recognized immediately: The spiky haired one that had attacked him and Glory when they had first met.

XH: Well, well, look who decided to turn up.

H: So, training a new recruit, are you?

XH: Something like that, yeah. Now I'll show her how to kill a wrinkled old vampire with a soul.

Xander lunged forward, but Heinrich shoved him away and onto the ground.

H: I don't know. You sure she's ready for something like that?

XH: Hey, Faith! Now would be a good time to pitch in here!

The female vampire, Faith, came forward eagerly. But before she reached him, something impacted Heinrich from behind. An electric charge surged up his body and he fell backward. He was stunned and couldn't move. He saw a man dressed in military garb standing above him holding a taser before passing out. Xander laughed with pleasure.

XH: Whoa! Hey, thanks guys! That was-agghhhh!

Before Xander could finish, the guy he was in the middle of thanking shot him with a taser too. As he fell twitching to the ground next to Heinrich, Faith wimpered, backed away, and ran off. Then the military dressed guys dragged Heinrich and Xander off into the darkness.

The Master's Lair

The Master and Willow were discussing something when Faith burst into the room.

M: Faith? Where's Xander?

FL: He's been taken away!

M: What?

WR: By who?

FL: Men with guns. Army men.

WR: Army people?

FL: They kidnapped my prince and took them both away!

M: Wait: _them_?

FL: My dark prince and Honey-Rick, the one who ruined my fun kill!

M: You mean Heinrich? Wow, that guy just can't stay out of trouble, can he?

WR: What about these army guys? Who are they and what do they want with vampires?

FL: Who cares? We need to get my Xander back!

Willow gave Faith a scathing and jealous look.

M: In order to get him back, Faith, we need to know where he is first.

The Initiative Containment Chamber

Heinrich woke up inside a sterile room. He stood up and looked around. It looked like he was inside a small containment cell with a shield barrier preventing him exit. Across the room, he saw other containment cells with other vampires and demons inside them. What was this place?

XH: So, how's it hanging?

Heinrich looked sideways and saw that Xander was in the cell next to him.

H: So you don't know these guys?

XH: No! If I knew these guys, I wouldn't be locked up, you dummy!

There was a pause, in which the snarling of the other captive demons filled the room.

H: It looks like some government installation that captures demonic creatures.

XH: They can do that?

At that moment, two men dressed in lab coats entered the room through a sliding door at the end of the hallway. Heinrich lay down on the floor, feigning unconsciousness. Xander quickly mimicked him. Heinrich felt one of the lab coats dragging him out of his cell and lifting him onto a stretcher. The second one moved Xander out of his cell as well.

LC#1: These two were caught recently, right?

LC#2: Yeah. Wow! Look at _this_ one.

LC#1: Yeah, he's an ugly sucker, isn't he?

Xander snickered. He couldn't control himself.

LC#1: Mine's awake! Get the serum!

Heinrich launched himself off his stretcher and shoved his lab coat into the wall, knocking him out. He turned to the other lab coat, who was sprinting toward the door. Heinrich leapt forward and knocked him out too. He turned to look at Xander as alarm klaxons blared around them.

H: Look what you did! We've been caught!

XH: (Gesturing around the room) Hel-lo! We've already _been_ caught!

H: We've got to find a way out of here.

XH: We? I'm sorry, are you suggesting a partnership?

H: You want to get out without being killed or locked up? We'll have to help each other.

Xander sighed and followed Heinrich toward the door out of the room. It split open before they reached it, revealing a group of those commandos in military garb on the other side. Heinrich shoved his way through them, knocking several down onto the ground. Xander shot after him, with the remaining commandos not far behind. They ran down the corridors, passing other people in lab coats, who froze and dove out of the vampires' way. They reached a dead end. Looking around hurriedly, Heinrich saw an air vent in the wall.

H: In there!

As Heinrich started to climb through, the other commandos had caught up. Xander turned as one of them grabbed his leg and punched him in the face. But even as the commando released him, Xander yelled and clutched his head in pain. The commando tried to grab him again, but he ducked and hastily followed Heinrich through the vent and out into the open which, thankfully, was night. Looking around, he saw that Heinrich had already run off. Getting to his feet, Xander rubbed his head again. It had felt like there had been an electric charge inside his brain. What had those stupid army people done to him?

UC Sunnydale, Day

AM: Go on! Ask him out!

GD: I can't. I'm not sure if I even want to.

AM: Well, if you won't I will.

GD: Okay, fine.

They waited outside the classroom until Adam walked out.

GD: Adam? Can I talk to you?

AW: Sure.

Glory cleared her throat.

GD: So . . . I was wondering, um, do you, maybe, want to . . . go out with me?

Adam looked slightly surprised.

AW: Really?

GD: Yeah. Just to get to know you.

AW: Uh . . . yeah. Sure. Where do you want to go?

GD: (Taken aback that he had agreed so quickly) Oh, um, how about my place for dinner?

AW: You mean your dorm room?

GD: No, actually, I was thinking of a friend's house outside the campus.

AW: Alright. I'll just go with you then.

Caleb's Apartment, Day

Caleb sat on his couch, watching one of those fictional television programs about vampires.

C: Oh, come on! A _fork_ killed him? _Really_.

He was bored out of his mind since he had lost his librarian job. He was still Glory's Watcher, but it had gotten very slow since she had gone off to college. Then someone banged at his door rapidly. Caleb stood up and opened it. Heinrich burst in, covered in a blanket that was smoking heavily.

C: Heinrich! What are you . . . ?

Heinrich tossed the blanket aside as Caleb shut the drapes.

H: Something really odd happened to me last night.

C: What are you talking about?

H: I was wandering the campus last night, saw a vampire attack, saved the victim, but then I got tased.

C: I'm sorry?

H: I was captured by some army looking guys and was held in containment underground in a science lab. It looked like a government installation.

C: The government involved in capturing demons? I didn't think they knew about vampires and the supernatural. Did you say there were other demons in there too?

H: Yeah. Myself, Xander, a couple of other vampires, some demons, and-

C: Xander?

H: Oh, yeah: That guy with the spiky hair who works for The Master.

C: You were _both_ captured?

H: Yeah. Did I mention he was the vampire I ran into on campus?

C: No, you didn't.

The door opened again. Glory and Amy came in, followed by a tall, burly man who looked somewhat familiar to Heinrich.

C: Glory? Do come in, please. (Seeing Adam) Um, who's this?

GD: His name's Adam. I wanted to-ah, oops.

Heinrich had not dodged for cover when he saw the newcomer. He was staring hard at him, trying to remember where he'd seen him before. Then it clicked. He pointed accusingly at Adam.

H: You!

Adam stared at Heinrich too, but not in fear or revulsion, but intently. Glory looked quickly from Heinrich to Adam, struggling to think of some story about Heinrich's appearance.

C: What's going on here?

H: He's one of those guys who captured me! I saw him!

GD: What are you talking about?

AW: (To Heinrich) What are _you_ doing here in _public_?

GD: _You _know him? (To Heinrich) You know _him_?

C: He's one of the commandos?

H: Yeah. I recognize him.

GD&AM: _Commandos_?

H: Last night, I was ambushed by a bunch of army guys and captured underground. I barely got out. That guy is one of the ones who tried to recapture me.

Glory and Amy looked at Adam in shock. He looked slightly embarrassed, but cleared his throat.

AW: Yes. I am a member of The Initiative.

C: The Initiative?

AW: It's an army installation devoted to capturing demonic creatures and studying them.

C: Good God. I never knew that existed.

AW: You're not supposed to. That's why it's a _secret_ organization. So, now that _my_ secret is out, how do _you_ all know about demons and _why_ are you hiding that vampire from us?

Glory looked over at Caleb, who shrugged helplessly.

GD: I'm the Vampire Slayer; Amy's a witch; Caleb is my Watcher, and Heinrich is a friend of ours. He was cursed with a soul.

Adam looked around at them all.

AW: Well, that's an interesting story.

H: So you captured me just because I'm a vampire, is that it?

AW: Well, yeah. I had no idea vampires could have souls.

C: It's an extremely rare case.

GD: (To Adam) I'm still not sure where you stand in this.

AW: I'm one of the good guys, if that's what you mean. Our mission is to take down the demons. We've even found ways to condition them.

AM: How do you mean?

AW: Well, (To Heinrich) by the way, that other guy who was with you, was he also a friend of yours?

H: No way.

GD: What other guy?

H: Xander, The Master's minion.

GD: They got him too?

H: Yeah, but he escaped with me.

AW: Anyway, about that guy, we implanted a chip in his head. It'll go off if he attempts to harm a human.

There was a stunned silence. Then Glory and Heinrich burst out laughing.

AM: You put a chip in his head?

AW: It was an experiment. I told you, that's what we do.

H: (Dangerously) You didn't happen to put a chip in _my_ head, did you?

AW: No. We were going to, but you escaped before we could.

There was another silence.

AW: I'd better go. No one can know I've just told you all this.

He turned and left. Glory and Amy looked over at Caleb.

AM: I don't know about this. Can we trust him?

C: I wouldn't get to comfortable around him. We need to figure out exactly what he and The Initiative are up to first.

The Initiative, Day

Inside lab room 413, lying on a table, was a mixture of human, demon, and mechanical parts combined into a single form. This being was a project of The Initiative's: Project 413. Several transparent tubes were attached to the body from a machine next to the table on which it lay. A lab coat entered the room with a clipboard.

LC: Good morning, Riley. How are we doing today?

He walked around the table to the machine next to it and pressed some buttons on it. The machine sent an electric current into the body, causing it to twitch. The lab coat scribbled on his clipboard.

LC: Hm. Doing well so far. Let's see, the Uranium was installed yesterday, so all that's left to do now is to restrain him down before he-

He was cut off by a skewer jamming through his chest.

LC: -wakes . . . up.

He fell off the skewer and down to the ground. The cyborg, Riley, looked down at the doctor's body, then around the room in curiosity.

R: Interesting . . .

The Master's Lair

Faith paced around the chamber anxiously. The Master and Willow were still discussing what could have happened to Xander, when he came hurrying into the room.

FL: Xander! You're back!

As Faith ran forward and embraced him, Willow seethed with anger. She hated the fact that Xander had started shifting his attention from her to Faith. He wasn't supposed to do this to her! _She _made _him_! But . . . priorities first; Where Xander had been was more important now than his pathetic change of affection.

M: What happened to you? Faith said you had been taken away by the army?

XH: (Angrily) Not only that. They did something to me! I can't kill anyone!

WR: What?

XH: Every time I've tried to hit or bite anyone, this pain goes off in my head!

Willow approached Xander and examined his skull.

WR: Well, I'm no expert, but there are stitches here. It looks like they put something in your head that must activate on violent actions, like a chip or something.

XH: Then get it out of me!

WR: I'm not a surgeon, Xander. I can't do anything.

M: Well, you'd better think of something. I won't have my strongest minion unable to fight.

Caleb's Apartment, Day

Caleb was preparing a cup of tea for himself when his door burst open with a bang, nearly making him drop the cup. He placed it on the counter and looked up at Glory and Amy standing in the living room.

C: Knocking is courteous, you know.

GD: Caleb, Adam just came back from The Initiative. Something in there killed someone and escaped.

C: Oh my. Where is Adam, anyway? Is he with you?

AM: No, he's out trying to find whatever did it.

The Master's Lair

Xander stood in the center of the chamber. Willow was chanting and moving her arms around, while The Master, Giles, and Faith watched. Finally, Willow put her hands down.

WR: Nope. Nothing I can do. It can't be removed magically. It would risk turning you into a vegetable.

XH: So what then? I have to go back to those army people and ask them politely to remove the chip they shoved up my brain?

R: Perhaps I can be of assistance.

The new, deep voice made them all jump and turn around. A grotesque being that looked like a mixture of human, demon, and machine parts stood in the entrance to the chamber.

M: What the hell are you?

R: I am a kinematically redundant, bio-mechanical demonoid. My creators called me Riley.

M: O-kay. What are you doing in here then, _Riley_?

R: You are vampires: Part demon and part human, like myself. I trust you understand the confusion and hopelessness that I feel.

M: No, we don't. _We're_ not walking dead body parts.

R: On the contrary, you are dead bodies with consciousness. The only contrast between yourselves and I is that I am consisted of multiple organic components. I was created to kill living beings to create an army of others like myself, to take on the human and demonic life forms of this world.

M: Good for you. Now, _why are you here_?

R: I thought we could come to an agreement in collaboration.

M: Did you? Why should we help you?

R: Because I can help remove the behavior modification chip from your minion's brain.

XH: (Hopefully) Really? (Then skeptical) _You_ can do that? You're a botched up science experiment!

R: In addition to organic material and advanced weaponry, I also have the technology and knowledge to perform the required dissection.

XH: (Slowly, uncertain) Alright . . . what do I have to do then?

UC Sunnydale, Night

Glory, Amy, Heinrich, Caleb, and Adam walked around the campus.

H: So, what exactly are we looking for?

AW: The Initiative is underneath the campus. So the thing that escaped must be close to here.

R: A very accurate theorem.

They all jumped. Riley had suddenly appeared in front of them. They stared at the thing, repulsed.

R: You will make a fine addition to my army.

C: Sweet lord of heaven.

R: Adam. You must come with us.

AW: What?

GD: _Us_?

Xander appeared at Riley's shoulder.

XH: Teamed up with those commandos, Slayer?

H: How's that chip in your head, Xander? Keeping you all behaved?

XH: For your information, I'm about to be rid of it soon.

R: Adam. You must come with us.

AW: Why? What are you?

R: My creators had specific instructions for you.

AW: You mean The Initiative?

R: Certainly. In order to preserve life on this planet and convert the misguided life forms of humanity and demonology into one perfect race. Now come.

AW: No.

R: I gave you the chance to abide willingly. Now, I must resort to the final option.

He pressed a button on his mechanical chest plate. Adam stiffened, then walked obediently to stand next to Riley.

GD: What did you do to him?

R: Nothing. A behavior modifier was implanted inside him by my creators long before I was conceived, in order to prepare him for his destiny by my side.

XH: Can we go now? I really want this damn chip out of my head!

Riley turned and, without another word or confrontation-ending taunt, walked toward the college building behind him. Xander and Adam followed him. But Adam turned his head back to Glory and the others as he walked away. He mouthed "Help me" before turning back ahead and following Riley and Xander into the building.

GD: We've got to save him!

H: I don't get it. He's conditioned, and yet he still has some control of his actions?

C: It seems so. That could be pivotal later, if Riley's control over him is minimal . . .

AM: What do we do about this?

C: Well, it seems that Riley is going to create an army of 'perfect' beings to release upon humanity and . . . Oh lord . . .

GD: What?

AM: I hate it when you say 'oh lord'. It always means something bad.

C: Heinrich said that the containment cells were full of demons. There must be tons of soldiers and scientists working in The Initiative . . .

H: The Trojan horse technique.

C: (Nodding) He's going to release the demons contained in there upon the humans inside.

AM: So they can savage each other?

GD: And give Riley a big pile of body parts from both sides to start creating his army of cyborgs.

H: So the question is, how do we stop it?

GD: Maybe . . . I'll just kick his ass?

C: No. Riley was made out of several different breeds of demon, plus the mechanical installations. He's going to be physically unbeatable in a fight, even for you, Glory.

They stood in silence for a while.

AM: Well, I don't know about the massacre, but I have an idea about how to stop that Riley guy.

The Initiative

Riley, Xander, and Adam stood in a secret room deep within The Initiative. Riley had explained that this room would be the foundation of the new race of Bio-Mechanical demonoids.

XH: So, when do I get the chip out?

R: When the battle is done and my army has risen.

AW: I won't let you do this!

R: Yes you will. You have no power of your own. Not yet. Once you embrace your destiny and forget your old life, you will know power you've never dreamed of.

AW: Do you mean . . . turn me into something like _you_?

R: It is and always has been your destiny. Sit.

Adam unwillingly sat down in the chair behind him. Riley turned to Xander.

R: Come with me, vampire. I have a job for you.

XH: Is it going to be hard? I want this chip out now if it's going to be hard.

R: It will be removed when everything is in order. Come.

Xander sighed with irritation and followed Riley out of the room, leaving Adam alone. They entered a control room, full of video screens showing every room of the complex. Riley sat down and pressed buttons until alarm klaxons went off.

R: This certainly will be interesting.

Xander saw through the view screens that the demons in containment had been released. They raced out of the room and into the hallways, leaping onto people and ripping them to shreds.

XH: Whoa, that's heavy.

Meanwhile, Glory, Caleb, Amy, and Heinrich had just entered the complex using Adam's instructions. It was total chaos inside. Humans and demons were firing guns and tearing flesh apart on all sides.

C: We need to find a place near Riley and quiet for the spell to work!

H: (Indicating the fighting in front of them) Quiet?

GD: Come on! We need to find them!

They dove into the battle, dodging bullets and claws.

GD: Amy! Try to sense Adam!

Amy ducked behind a crate and closed her eyes. After a minute, her eyes snapped open again.

AM: This way!

She led them down a corridor full of mutilated bodies of human and demon alike until they reached a restricted lab labeled 413, whose door was ajar. They saw a piece of wall across the room that had a line down it, indicating a secret door.

GD: Okay, you guys stay here and do the spell while I go in there?

AM: Yeah. If it works, it will take about five minutes to take effect.

GD: I'll move quickly, then.

C: Good luck.

GD: You guys too.

Glory pulled the wall aside and entered the room behind it. When the wall closed shut behind her, Caleb, Amy, and Heinrich sat in a circle on the floor.

In the secret construction lab, Glory saw Adam sitting in a chair in the middle of the room. She ran down to him.

GD: Adam.

AW: Glory?

GD: Where's Riley?

AW: (With difficulty, owing to the chip's influence) Control . . . room.

GD: Hold on, I'll come back for you once I finish him off.

She ran past him and into the control room. Adam looked next to him and saw some surgery equipment on a table.

In the control room, Riley and Xander spun around as Glory kicked the door open.

XH: Aw geez!

R: You are foolish. You cannot defeat me on your own.

Glory moved forward, but Riley easily threw her back into the wall.

Outside, Adam heard the sounds of fighting. Judging by the sounds of the person being thrown around, he knew it couldn't be going well. He looked over at the line of utensils next to him and somehow managed to inch his hand toward a scalpel and seized it. With another burst of willpower, he shoved the scalpel into his chest and grimaced with pain . . .

Back in the control room, Riley bore down on Glory, who was slumped on the ground.

R: You humans are all weak. Not worthy of life.

Riley extended his right arm, and the bone skewer of the Polgara demon the arm had once belonged to emerged.

R: This is you? Is this really all the infamous Vampire Slayer has?

Then someone else burst into the room, grabbed Riley's skewer and snapped the end off. It was Adam. There was a bloody stain around his heart.

AW: Nope, she's got me too.

R: How is this possible? Your chip-?

Adam held out his hand, which was covered in his own blood. A small metal chip sat in his hand.

AW: I guess my desire to stop you and help Glory overcame the effects of your chip.

XH: You _dug out_ your chip? Hey, can you do mine too?

R: Even two for you are no match for me.

AW: If we were fighting blind, yeah. But we know your weakness.

R: That is absurd. I have no weakness.

Adam took out a small hand held grenade.

R: What is that?

Adam put the grenade on the floor, grabbed Glory's hand, and tugged her back out of the room, hurriedly shutting the door behind them. Riley bent down and looked closely at the grenade. Just as he realized what it was, it exploded.

Outside the room, Adam and Glory heard the explosion from behind the closed door.

GD: What was that?

AW: Electromagnetic Pulse Grenade.

GD: Electro-Huh?

AW: Riley had a Uranium Power Core keeping him alive. His hide was too tough to penetrate, so I set off an EMP grenade. The energy reacted to the Uranium and exploded.

GD: Do you always carry those around with you?

AW: They trained me to be prepared for anything. And it paid off.

They walked out of the room and into the smaller lab, where Caleb, Heinrich, and Amy still sat.

AM: Did it work? The Enjoining spell?

GD: Uh . . . no. We finished him with an EMP grenade.

AM: (Disappointed) It . . . didn't work?

GD: Sorry. But we did win.

AW: Not yet. There is still a war going on between the demons and soldiers here. We have to withdraw the soldiers and seal off The Initiative.

GD: Then let's do it.

The Master's Lair

As The Master sat in her throne, deep in thought, Xander staggered in, covered in suit and looking as though he'd just escaped from a fire.

M: What happened to you?

X: (Hysterically) You wanna know what happened? Fine! I did what that stupid robot said, then the Slayer turned up!

M: Did she kill him?

X: Yep! Blew him up! _With_ _me in the room with him_!

M: I could tell as soon as he walked in that he would be no help to us at all. His ambition was to get rid of not only humanity, but _ourselves_ as well. You do realize now that had you helped him, you would have died too? Humans, demons, _and_ vampires would have all been wiped out. Plus, he wasn't interested in opening the Hellmouth anyway.

As Xander grunted and left the chamber, The Master felt something in the air change, like a ripple or current; like something had been dramatically changed . . .

She shrugged it off. It was probably nothing.

Nothing had changed . . .


	5. Season Five

Season Five

Caleb's Apartment, Day

Glory, Caleb, Amy, Heinrich, and Adam sat around Caleb's living room.

GD: So, what did you want to tell us?

C: Well, now don't be alarmed or anything, but I think that there is another new evil coming up.

AM: What do you mean?

C: Well, there has been an increase of insane people all over Sunnydale.

H: So?

C: So, that many people don't all turn insane on their own. I think something is doing it to them. GD: Like a mind sucking demon?

C: Possibly. We'll have to keep an eye out for anything new in town.

Abandoned Factory, Day

Cordelius looked around at her temporary hideout in disgust. Someone as perfect and important as herself should not be living in a dirty, disgusting factory. But, she reminded herself, she was lucky to be able to release herself and think freely about her mission for once. She missed home so much. All she wanted was to return there and retake the dimension she so deserved to rule. But to do that, she needed The Key; and she knew it was here somewhere. Her minions, who had joined her once they discovered her glorious prescience, were out looking for it now. Of course, they didn't have much in information: All she knew was that those arrogant monks had sent it to this world, in some form or another, it was being guarded by something, and had to be used in this exact location. She wouldn't be in this horrible building otherwise.

She heard footsteps behind her. Turning, she saw Harmony, her top minion, approaching her.

Cor: Did you find anything?

Har: Most glamorous and strong one, we've done as well as we can without any leads.

Cor: In other words, you found nothing.

Har: We are doing the best we can, oh stunning and elegant one.

Cor: Yeah, well your best isn't good enough for me! Find my key!

Harmony bowed, making simpering apologetic comments, and backed out of the room.

Cor: Ugh! Useless minions! I guess if you want something done, you have to do it yourself.

She swept irritably out of the room after Harmony.

Sunnydale Park, Day

Caleb and Collin walked around the park together.

CD: But why aren't I allowed to patrol with them?

C: Because, your sister is the Slayer. It's _her_ job to battle the forces of darkness. You shouldn't be anywhere near all that violence.

CD: I'm old enough!

C: You're ten years old! You're not old enough to deal with all that.

CD: Come on! It's not fair!

They passed a girl that Caleb recognized as Kennedy, a girl student from the old High School.

C: Hello, Kennedy. How are you?

Kennedy didn't look at him. She was staring at Collin and mumbling under her breath.

C: Kennedy? Are you alright, dear?

K: (To Collin) You. What are you? You're here, but you're not. Why is everybody screaming like that? STOP! STOP IT!

She grabbed her hair and tugged it, whimpering about voices and other strange things.

CD: (Scared) Is she okay?

C: I don't know.

Caleb seized Kennedy's arms, trying to calm her down. She stopped and looked at Collin again.

K: Why are you still here? You don't belong here.

CD: (Anguished) Mr. Caleb? What does she mean?

Caleb released Kennedy, grabbed Collin's arm and hurriedly led him away from her.

CD: What was she talking about? Why was she saying those things about me?

C: She's obviously disturbed in her mind. Another victim of the insanity spread, no doubt.

At that moment, a security guard came up to them. He was short with dark red, spiky hair.

SG: I'm sorry, was that girl bothering you?

C: Oh, no. Thank you. She was just babbling.

SG: Sorry, she looked like she was giving you guys a hard time. My name's Daniel, by the way, but everybody calls me Oz.

C: Nice to meet you. I'm Caleb and this is Collin.

O: Your son?

C: Oh, no, no. He's the brother of a friend of mine.

O: Huh. Well, I'd better go. Have a nice day.

Caleb watched Oz walk away as he and Collin made their way back in the direction of his apartment.

The Master's Lair

Willow, Xander, Faith, and Giles are gathered around The Master.

M: Crazy people?

RG: Yeah. They're popping up all over the place.

WR: Then something must be causing it.

M: Obviously. It seems like the symptoms of being brain sucked.

XH: Brain sucked? First we have brain _chipped_, and now we have brain _sucked_?

WR: Not many demons have that particular ability or motivation. Except -

FL: (Dreamily) The ones who control the stars.

M: What?

FL: (Gazing up at the ceiling) Sitting on clouds, humming and singing with the heavens: gods.

RG: Huh?

XH: _Gods?_

M: Don't be insane, Faith. Gods can't exist in this universe.

WR: They can if they are hitched onto another life here.

XH: You mean like a god possessing a human or something?

WR: Possibly, or the human might not even be aware of the god's existence inside themselves.

XH: So, what do gods normally do?

WR: Well, assuming this _is_ a god, most likely it will want to leave this world and go back to its home realm of existence.

FL: They're here. I can hear them . . . They're not very nice. They want something . . . something here . . .

RG: (To Xander) What does she mean?

XH: How do I know?

RG: Well, since you're the one who made her all crazy-

XH: Watch it! I was just . . . experimenting with her a little.

WR: Why _did_ you make her insane before siring her anyway?

XH: I told you, I was experimenting.

FL: . . . something new . . . something old . . .

WR: Is she still talking about the same thing?

XH: I think so. She can _see_ things.

M: _See_ things?

XH: I can't explain it, but after I finished . . . messing with her, she . . . you know, went all loopy, but she seems to see things we don't.

FL: . . . something good . . . something bad . . .

Everyone stared at her as she started giggling uncontrollably.

FL: . . . something very wrong is here!

Abandoned Factory, Day

Cordelius lay slumped on the floor. As soon as she had returned from her unsuccessful search, her strength and some of her sanity had already been drained away. Harmony and another minion named Anya dragged a struggling man into the room. They threw him down next to Cordelius, who grasped for him and stuck her fingers into his head. The man screamed in pain as Cordelius screamed in pleasure, and light shone out of the man's head. Then they fell away from each other. The man scrambled to his feet, mumbled randomly under his breath, and stumbled out of the room. Harmony and Anya hurried over and lifted Cordelius to her feet.

Cor: That was a little too close for comfort, you guys. Try to do better next time.

A: Of course!

Har: We live to serve you, magnificent Cordelius!

Cor: Please, call me Cordy. Now, since we don't seem to be making much headway with the searching randomly, go and interrogate Danny next time you see him.

A: Right away!

Har: At once, most splendid Cordy!

Caleb's Apartment, Day

Caleb and Collin met up with Glory and the others when they got back.

GD: You saw Kennedy and she was insane too?

C: I'm afraid so.

CD: Tell her about what she said about me!

GD: What do you mean?

C: Oh, Kennedy just said something that got on Collin's nerves, that's all.

CD: She said that I'm not real and I don't exist!

AM: Well, she's wrong then. We've known you our whole lives.

H: But isn't there always some truth in crazy people's statements?

Glory and Amy shot Heinrich warning looks. Collin looked upset.

C: Yes, that is sometimes true, but not in this case. Now, Glory, I would suggest you patrol tonight and search for anything new in town.

GD: Sure. Any ideas where to start?

Abandoned Factory, Night

Glory, Heinrich, and Adam approached the darkened factory.

AW: This is it?

GD: Yep.

H: Looks deserted.

GD: Which is exactly why Caleb said we should check it out.

They entered the building, which seemed to be crumbling around them.

AW: What are we supposed to be looking for?

GD: Anything demonic, basically.

They moved forward, looking and listening for anything.

Suddenly, something that looked like a demon covered in scabs jumped in front of them.

Har: Hey! You can't come in here and disturb her greatness!

GD: What the-?

Harmony dived right into Adam, knocking him down. Another scabby demon came round the corner and jumped on Heinrich, wrapping its arms around his neck. Glory was curious to know who or what they were guarding. She ran past the two struggling pairs and into the next room.

A girl who looked around Glory's age, maybe a few years older, stood facing her, hands on her hips.

Cor: So, are you here to give me my key?

GD: What key? Who are you?

Cor: You don't know who I am? Wow. Do you live under a rock?

GD: Well, since you have demonic minions, I'll assume you're demonic as well. Ever fought a Slayer before?

Cor: A Slayer? You're a_ Slayer_? Oh, how insulting! I know that I suck people's brains out, but come on! I deserve to go up against someone better than a common Vampire Slayer!

GD: Good. Then it is you. Well, prepare to get your ass kicked.

Glory ran forward, but was flung back immediately. The girl sniffed.

Cor: This is such a waste of my time.

Glory got back up and ran at her again. She threw a hard punch at her, but the girl grabbed her fist with effortless strength and flung her into the wall.

Cor: Harmony! Anya! Where are you both?

As though in response, they both flew into the room. Heinrich and Adam ran in after them.

Cor: Oh, so you've got a boyfriend and a- eww! My god, how can you be seen around with _him_?

AW: I'm not her boyfriend.

H: You know, that's rich coming from someone who has _those_ ugly little guys trailing around after her.

They saw Glory getting up on the other side of the room. A huge indent in the wall showed where she had impacted it.

AW: Oh. Boy.

Cor: If you guys are the protectors of The Key, than this will be much easier than I'd have imagined it would.

Adam and Heinrich helped Glory across the room and out of the factory.

Cor: Hey! Come back! I wasn't finished insulting you!

AW: Who was that?

GD: Dunno. She's strong and wants something called The Key. She seemed to think I was guarding it.

They hurried out of the building and across the empty parking lot.

Then someone grabbed Heinrich from behind. He turned and saw what appeared to be an old monk standing there.

M: You are the Slayer?

GD: Yes. Who are you?

AW: A monk, obviously.

M: Yes. I needed to tell you: You must protect The Key.

GD: Why does everyone think I have this key thing?

M: You do. My brethren sent it to you.

GD: What do you mean?

M: We had to protect The Key from Cordelius, a hell god from another dimension.

H: That girl was a god?

M: (Ignoring him) We had to hide it. If she used it, a portal will open, send her back home, but the world would fall into darkness. We gave The Key form, remade it into human and sent it to the Slayer to protect.

GD: Human?

M: A brother. For the Slayer, so she would want to protect it.

GD: Collin? He's . . . not my brother?

M: He doesn't know that.

GD: But . . . we remember him. I grew up with him. I've known him my whole live!

M: We remolded the memories of you and your friends, to conceal our actions.

AW: You-?

GD: (Angrily) How could you do that to us! Undo it! This is my life you're messing with!

M: It's too late for that. The responsibility is yours.

GD: No, no. This can't be . . . he can't be not real!

M: Protect him. It is the only-

The monk was cut short by a fist emerging through his chest. He fell dead to the ground revealing the girl, Cordelius, behind him.

Cor: Don't you just hate taddle-tailers? But then, he never told _me_ most of that stuff.

Adam whipped out his taser blaster and shot her. The energy rebounded off her, leaving a small scorch mark.

Cor: Hey! Do you know how much this dress costs?

She slapped Adam with enough force for him to fly five feet away and slam into the chain link fence surrounding the parking lot. Heinrich grabbed Glory's arm.

H: Come on!

He and Glory gathered up Adam, who had fallen unconscious, and dragged him away.

None of them noticed the red haired girl hiding behind the fence, watching and listening . . .

The Master's Lair

Willow hurried back into the chamber, out of breath (Or she would have been if vampires could breathe). The Master, Xander, Giles, and Faith turned to face her.

M: Willow? What is it?

WR: I've . . . found out . . . what's going on!

M: What do you mean?

XH: The brain sucker?

WR: Yeah! I just overheard the Slayer and some monk talking. Before he was killed, that is.

RG: Monks? Monks suck brains?

WR: No you moron! The monk got killed by the brain sucker!

Giles looked outraged and a little embarrassed.

M: What did they talk about before the monk was killed?

WR: Something called Cordelius was after something called The Key. The monks sent it to the Slayer in the form of a brother so that she would protect it from Cordelius.

XH: That little twerp is a key?

M: And he doesn't really exist? But I remember dealing with his prescience before.

WR: The monk said they redid everyone's memories so they would think he'd always been there.

M: I _thought_ I'd felt something change before . . .

XH: Great, so not only have I got a stupid chip in my head, but false memories too?

WR: So it would seem. So I was _right_ about it being a god then!

XH: Yeah, yeah, you're so smart go dance around and sing, but what about the brain sucking? Why does she do that?

WR: I'd assume to stay alive. A god being in this dimension can't be very stable, so she probably sucks on the life force of humans to stay stabilized and strengthen herself. The end result of having your mind sucked would be-

FL: Insanity.

She giggled insanely.

FL: I told you all . . . good brother: bad key, new boy: old power . . . I told you!

She laughed again.

RG: What do we do about this?

M: (To Willow) What is this god's goal?

WR: The monk said she wanted to open a dimensional portal to return to her home dimension.

M: That's it? Rather anti-climactic. Isn't anyone interested in the Hellmouth anymore?

eHHH

Caleb's Apartment, Day

Glory, Adam, and Heinrich had just finished telling Caleb and Amy what had happened at the factory.

C: Well, this is quite astounding. I really don't know what to think.

AM: So, Collin isn't your brother and is actually a mystical key that opens dimensions?

GD: Yep.

AM: So, how old is Collin really, I mean, when was he . . . ?

GD: A few months ago.

H: What do we do about it? Do we tell him?

Collin stood out of sight in the next room, listening and looking anguished.

C: No. He is very young. The knowledge will be too much for him to handle.

AM: Well, technically he's almost as old as time.

C: Yes, but his consciousness is only ten years old. He's in tremendous danger now.

Collin ran out of the apartment and into the street, bursting into tears. He kept running until he bumped into someone. It was the security guard, Oz.

O: Hey there, little guy. Are you lost?

CD: (Crying) N-no! Go away!

O: Maybe I should take you home.

CD: No! I don't want to go home again!

O: I'm sure your parents will want to know where you are.

CD: I have no parents! I'm not even real!

O: You have no family at all?

CD: Just my stupid, fake, lying sister! She says I'm not real and that I'm some sort of key that some god wants!

Oz had stepped back, staring at him.

O: You're The Key? Oh no. You've got to go home to Glory.

Collin stopped crying and looked up at Oz.

CD: I never told you what my sister's name was.

O: (Urgently) Go! Go home before . . .

He looked horrified.

O: Oh no. She's coming. Go now! If she finds out who you are . . .

He grabbed Collin's shoulders and shook him.

O: Oh, god she's-

He suddenly morphed into a girl.

Cor: -here!

Cordelius looked at Collin in confusion.

Cor: Who're you?

Collin backed away, looking scared.

Cor: Who _are _you?

She ran after him and grabbed his arm.

Cor: Don't go telling anybody what you just saw, small fry.

GD: Too late. We saw your manly side already.

Glory, Adam, Amy, and Caleb had arrived (Heinrich had stayed behind due to sun issues).

Cor: You again.

GD: Let go of my brother.

Cordelius's eyes widened. Then she looked down at Collin.

Cor: _You_. You're coming with me.

AW: (Raising his taser blaster) No he isn't.

Cor: It's so cute, thinking you can stop me.

Glory and Adam charged, but they were tossed backwards like rag dolls.

Cordy dragged Collin backwards.

CD: Glory! Help me! Help!

Cor: Shut up, you runt.

Glory sat up, rubbing her head, seeing Amy and Caleb running after Cordy and Collin, but with one swing of her free arm, she sent them both flying, too.

GD: Collin!

She tried to stand, but Adam held her back.

AW: It's too late.

GD: No, I can't let him die! I have to save him!

She struggled to get free, but Adam held her down. Caleb and Amy approached them.

C: (Rubbing his elbow) Are you both alright?

AW: Yeah.

GD: We have to get Collin back!

C: We will. We just need a plan.

AM: Yeah, we don't even know how to fight her.

Abandoned Factory, Night

Harmony, Anya, and several other scabby minion demons scurried around the factory, while Cordelius paced around Collin, who was tied to a chair.

Cor: Don't be looking so upset. You should be honored to be doing this. You're fulfilling your destiny.

CD: Please stop. Let me go.

Cor: Oh, see, I can't do that. See, my problems are loads more important than yours.

CD: I just wanna go home.

Cor: Funny, 'cause that's exactly where I'm sending you: Your home is in the lock that sends _me_ home.

Caleb's Apartment, Night

AM: So, what harms gods?

C: I'm not sure anything can. But, since she is sharing a body with that Oz chap, I imagine her strength must be extremely reduced compared to her true form.

H: But how did she end up sharing the body of a human in the first place?

AW: The monk mentioned her being banished from her dimension before. Maybe she was sent down inhabiting a human to punish her, you know.

C: I suppose it's possible.

They all looked over at Glory, who sat hunched in a chair.

H: Is she alright?

C: She's just in shock. I mean, she discovers that her little brother isn't really her brother, then he gets captured. I'm sure she's having a hard time comprehending it all.

AW: Wait. Oz and Cordelius share a body, right?

C: Um, yes.

AW: Well, what if we . . . you know . . . got rid of Oz?

C: I'm sorry?

AW: Would getting rid of Oz get rid of her, too?

AM: Are you suggesting that we _kill him_?

AW: If it means getting rid of the god who's trying to kill all of _us_, then yeah.

AM: ARE YOU INSANE? We can't kill people! That's what the bad guys are for!

C: I'm afraid we may have no choice. I think it's the only loophole to her immortality. She dies when her human host dies.

H: We need to figure out something before she uses Collin to open that portal.

AW: How does this key thing work? I mean, if Collin is The Key, how does he work?

C: I think she needs his blood. Blood is a powerful source of life. I believe his blood acts as the so called 'key' to open the 'door' and activate the portal. The question is, what can we do?

GD: We get Collin back. Then deal with that god-bitch.

Everyone looked at her in concern. Then, unanimously, they all silently agreed.

Abandoned Factory, Night

Cordelius observed the little boy, bound and standing on the roof of the factory, where the portal would open once his blood was spilled on that precise spot. She turned to Harmony and Anya.

Cor: Stand guard outside. Make sure nobody interrupts this.

They bowed enthusiastically and hurried downstairs.

Just as they reached the first floor, Anya was stabbed by Glory.

Har: Interlopers! You will not harm her magnificence or ruin her plan!

More scabby demons hurried into the room.

GD: Hold them off me! I'm going up!

Glory ran up the stairs while the others engaged the demons.

On the roof, Cordelius suddenly shuddered.

Cor: No. No, no, no, not now you moron!

She morphed back into Oz, who stared around in bewilderment.

O: Collin?

CD: Help me, please!

Glory burst onto the roof. Oz turned to face her.

O: You. You're the Slayer.

CD: Glory!

Oz groaned, then became Cordy again.

Cor: Ugh! Stay in there, you-!

She turned back into Oz.

O: Hurry! I can't hold her down for much-

Cordy was back.

Cor: Stop it Danny! I need to-

O: I won't let-

Cor: You can't stop me. You're not powerful enough-

O: Glory! Get Collin out of-

Cor: No, stay put so I can kill-

O: Agh!

Cor: Agh!

Glory stared at the chaotic scene before her, unsure of what to do. Then Cordy charged and knocked her down.

CD: Glory!

Cordy's hands wrapped themselves around Glory's neck.

Cor: Hey, think of it this way: If I kill you now, you won't have to see me kill your not-brother.

Oz took his hands off Glory's neck, looking pissed and upset at the same time.

O: Get your brother out of here before - Uh!

Oz jerked and fell forward on top of Glory, revealing Willow standing behind him. Glory rolled Oz off her and saw that Willow had stabbed Oz in the back. She looked up at Willow in astonishment.

WR: What? We don't want her to end the world either, you know. We just want to rule it.

GD: Get away from me.

WR: Oh, I'm so sorry that I just killed your enemy. I just spared you from having to kill an innocent human. Would've drained him, but . . .

Glory turned away from Willow to help Collin, only to realize that Harmony had slipped past her and Cordy/Oz while they were struggling, and hadn't heard Collins's yells of pain over the arguing and yelling of Cordy/Oz. Collins's blood had already dripped off the roof and on the desired spot to open the portal. Harmony backed away, raising the dagger she had used on Collin.

Har: Yes! Most glorious and special Cordelius! I have done it! You are free to-

She stopped dead, seeing the dead body of Oz between Glory and Willow.

Har: Oh.

Glory kicked Harmony right off the roof in anger. She hurried forward and untied Collin, but the portal had already begun to form, spitting lightning and lighting up the sky.

From below, Caleb, Amy, Adam, Heinrich, and the surviving minions stared up at the portal as though entranced.

On the roof, Willow backed away and ran as Glory tried to lead Collin away.

CD: Glory, it's too late. It's started.

GD: It doesn't matter. I have to get you out of here.

CD: No. I know what has to happen. My blood opened it. Only my blood can stop it.

GD: No! If you stop it, you'll die!

CD: I know. But, I'm not supposed to be here, anyway.

GD: No! I can't lose you!

CD: Glory, I really appreciate everything you've done to try to protect me. But I have to do this. You know it's the only way. _I can_ _save the world_.

GD: No. We can figure something out.

CD: There's no time. Please, let me go.

Glory started to cry, then hugged her little brother.

GD: I love you.

CD: I love you too, big sis.

Then Collin broke away and dived off the roof, into the portal. Glory watched in anguish and pride as the ten year old boy thrashed around inside the ball of energy, then became still as both he and the portal vanished. Glory stared at where they had vanished. Then, slowly, she turned and walked downstairs to the others.

Caleb ran up to her, bleeding from an injury on his left arm.

C: Glory! Where's . . . ?

Glory's look of pain told him everything. She collapsed into his shoulder.

Then the less than victorious winners of the battle left the factory in silence.

The Master's Lair

Willow had returned and told The Master everything that she had witnessed.

M: Humph. So, you managed to kill the human version of the god, but the portal had already been opened, then the Slayer's kid brother sacrificed his life to close the portal?

WR: Yep. That's what happened.

M: Hm. Lots of guts for a mere child. Reminds me so much of Dawn . . .

XH: (Impatiently) Have we thought of a way to get this damn chip out of my head yet?

WR: No. Deal with it, won't you?

XH: Deal with not being able to kill humans? If I can't do that, then why am I a vampire? I can't drink anything except blood from people you guys already killed! I can't live with this forever!

M: Oh, stop your whining.

WR: So was that the last big bad besides us that will rise here?

M: No. There has to be at least one coming up who wants the Hellmouth opened.

RG: (Trying to sound reasonable) Or we could just wait until the next Harvest.

M: (Angrily and sarcastically) Oh, yes! Great idea! Let's wait another century!

She smacked Giles across the room.

M: I will not wait that long again! I want to be free, and I want that Slayer and her friends dead!

WR: Yes. And we will make sure that happens, master.

M: You three and Faith aren't enough. I think it's time to bring out the big fangs.

WR: (Nervously) You don't mean . . . ?

M: Yes. It's time to bring in . . . The Three.

A long, dramatic silence followed.

XH: (No idea) The Who?


	6. Season Six

Season Six

Angel's House, Day

Angel Connor, William "Spike" Pratt, and Drusilla Edith; three nerds, sat around Angel's room, which was decorated with Star Wars, Star Trek, Indiana Jones, Superman, and other posters, merchandise, and action figures.

AC: I got it! Let's become super villains!

WP: (Excitedly) You mean like Lex Luthor, or Darth Vader?

Angel nodded enthusiastically.

WP: Yeah . . . that would be sweet!

DE: (With slight concern) But . . . won't we get in trouble for that?

WP: Only if we're caught.

AC: Come on, Dru. We could be like the three musketeers, if they were villains, that is.

WP: We could take over the town . . . have as many girls as we want . . .

DE: And guys too.

WP: Uh, yeah, sure. So, how do we prove our dominance?

AC: I've heard a rumor about a girl who lives here that defends the town from demons.

WP: That Slayer girl?

AC: Yeah! We could take her down!

DE: But why? Why can't we be _heroes_ and help her _defend_ the town instead?

Angel and Spike looked over at her in exasperation and irritation.

WP: If you're not going to be supportive, Dru, then abandon ship right now.

Drusilla looked down, ashamed. Spike looked back at Angel.

WP: So, what can we do to her?

The Master's Lair

M: Kill her, obviously.

Jonathan Levinson, Andrew Wells, and Warren Mears, the powerful trio of vampires known as The Three, stood imperiously before The Master, who had summoned them. Xander, Willow, Giles, and Faith stood behind their leader, observing the new arrivals with caution.

JL: Of course. But what will we gain by killing this girl for you?

M: This Slayer has been giving me some difficulty in the past. She prevented the Harvest and I remain stuck underground, unable to kill her myself. But none of the big evils that have turned up here had any ambition to open the Hellmouth and release me. So, if I can't kill her, you three could manage it for me.

AW: Interesting.

M: You three have always been my strongest allies. I know I can depend on you.

XH: (Whispering to Willow) _I'm_ just a '_minion'_, but _they're 'allies'_?

The Master had heard him. She turned her head to look at Xander.

M: _You_ have a chip in your head. You are unable to perform the task at hand. _They_ have served me much longer than you, and most importantly, they don't _complain_ about anything.

Xander glowered at her as she turned to address The Three again.

M: Once the girl is dead, the Hellmouth will be my priority.

WM: Excuse me, but if you already have minions, why didn't you have them open the Hellmouth for you before?

M: They are barely at the level of competent.

Xander, Willow, Giles, and Faith made hisses of outrage behind her, but she ignored them.

M: I want someone I can depend on to entrust these tasks to.

JL: Very well. We will kill her for you.

Caleb's Apartment, Day

Caleb, Amy, Adam, and Heinrich sat around Caleb's table.

C: Have you spoken to her at all?

AM: I tried a few times, but she's still very distraught.

C: So am I, a little.

AW: It feels strange. What happened last year and everything . . .

H: Has she continued her slaying duties recently?

C: Yes, but mainly as an outlet for her emotions.

AM: That's good though, right? That she's letting her emotions out?

C: Well, yes. I just hope she doesn't feel hopeless for much longer. It'll damage her not just emotionally, but physically as well.

Cemetery, Night

Glory wandered between the graves, holding her stake at her side limply.

For the most part, she was over her experience last year, but it sometimes came back and clawed at her insides. Much as she missed Collin, she was nevertheless proud of what he had done for her and the world.

Then she saw something move in the distance. She quietly made her way over to the shape, prepared to stake it if it was a vampire. Then she saw that it was a guy standing with his back to her. She hesitated, wondering what to do. Then the guy turned and looked at her, slightly anxiously.

GD: Oh, sorry. I saw you and thought . . .

Guy: It's alright. You just startled me. I was just thinking.

Glory moved closer to him.

GD: You shouldn't be out here, you know.

Guy: Why?

GD: It's dangerous at night.

Guy: So is crossing the street.

They both laughed.

Guy: Would you like to, well, have a cup of coffee sometime?

GD: (Taken aback) Really? I . . . wow. Sure.

She couldn't help it. Something about this guy was inspiring and comforting to her.

Guy: Cool. So, I'll meet you at the Expresso Pump tomorrow night?

GD: Yeah, that'd be great.

She turned to leave. Before she got too far, she turned back to him.

GD: Oh, my name's Glory, by the way. What's yours?

Guy: Warren.

The Master's Lair

M: So, your strategy is to have Warren get together with the Slayer, then have him lead her to you and then the three of you will finish her off?

AW: It seemed the best approach to it.

The Master looked in interest at Andrew and Jonathan, who had just told her about their plan to kill Glory.

M: Make her fall for Warren, make her gain his trust while she is still vulnerable due to the 'tragedy' of last year, then catch her off guard. Nice.

She looked over at Xander and the others.

M: You see? _That_ is the kind of intelligence I need.

WR: (Slightly hurt) But what about me? I've provided useful information.

M: Yes, but only expositional stuff, not sufficient action strategies.

XH: I thought that was _your_ job. You're the one giving us assignments and plans.

AW: Quiet, lab-monkey.

XH: You know, even with this chip, I can still kill _you_.

Andrew snorted.

AW: Please. You couldn't even kill me if I was _human _without that chip.

Xander moved forward, but Willow held him back.

WR: (Warningly) Don't. He'll rip your head off.

JL: Well, that could be one way to remove your chip!

He and Andrew burst out laughing. Xander glared at them in hatred.

WR: (To Xander) So, how's your _relationship_ going?

XH: (Taken aback) What do you mean?

WR: You and your crazy-ass girlfriend.

XH: (Trying to sound casual and unconcerned) Faith? Oh, I'm not into her anymore.

WR: Oh? Why not?

XH: She's . . . well . . . she's too much for me to deal with, to be honest. Why are you so interested anyway?

Willow turned away from Xander to hide the satisfied smile on her face.

WR: Oh, no reason.

Angel's House, Day

WP: So what first?

AC: We should create a super weapon, something to use against the Slayer.

WP: Like what? Oh: a Freezer Ray, or a Hypnotism Ray?

AC: Hmmm. You're in the right galaxy, but on the wrong planet.

DE: I could summon some demons to capture her!

AC: (Rolling his eyes) Like your dumb sister did? As if!

DE: Darla wasn't dumb! She was just . . . a little unstable because of . . . what happened before.

WP: That stupid prom prank? She could've sent something a bit more impressive than flying monkey demons.

DE: Well she's locked up now, happy?

WP: Doesn't matter to me either way.

AC: (Loudly) Hey! Focus people! Ideas!

A lengthy pause fell.

DE: A Strength enhancer?

Angel and Spike gasped in unison.

AC: Yes! Perfect! We should strengthen ourselves to fight her!

WP: But, just to knock her around a little, right?

AC: If she doesn't force us to do anything else.

DE: You mean, _kill her_? We can't commit murder!

AC: Why not? 'As long as we aren't caught', like Spike said earlier.

Spike looked a little uncomfortable, but, seemingly to impress Angel, he nodded in agreement.

AC: Good. Let's get cracking.

Caleb's Apartment, Day

C: (Exasperatedly) A date?

AM: That's great! I always said you should get a move on!

GD: I know. I just didn't feel it before. But something about Warren seems _right_, you know?

H: _Warren_? What kind of weird name is that?

AM: This coming from a guy called _Heinrich_.

C: Glory, are you sure you should be doing this? I mean, you're still somewhat, _affected_.

GD: Yes, I'm sure. I have a good feeling about him.

AW: I'd keep an eye on him though.

GD: Don't worry. I've been the Slayer for six years. I'm sure I'd recognize danger if I see it in front of me.

The Expresso Pump, Night

Glory saw Warren sitting at a table in the back of the coffee shop with two cups of coffee already in front of him and approached.

GD: Hi.

WM: Hi. Glad you could make it.

Glory sat down across from Warren, who handed her her coffee.

GD: So . . . tell me something about yourself.

WM: (Inventing) Well, I went to the Tech College in Dutton and graduated top of my class.

GD: Wow. I'm still trying to finish UC Sunnydale.

WM: Finish?

GD: Yeah, I kinda dropped out last year; family emergency.

WM: Oh, I'm sorry.

GD: I'm over it now.

They sat in silence for a while.

WM: Do you have any friends?

GD: Yeah, a few. Why?

WM: Well, I think you'll like my friends too. We should meet them some day.

GD: Each other's friends? (Uncertainly) Yeah . . . sure.

WM: Okay, great. How about tomorrow night, you can meet my friends Jonathan and Andrew on the corner of 6th street, then the next day, you can arrange a day for me to meet your friends.

GD: Um, sure. Okay.

WM: I really like hanging out with you, you know.

GD: Thanks. You're really nice.

They looked into each other's eyes for a moment. Then, spontaneously, without planning on it happening, they leaned forward over the table and kissed.

The sewer tunnels

On the walk back to The Master's cave, Warren found himself thinking about the Slayer in a way that he knew he shouldn't. He had staged their meeting to get her to think he liked her so she would trust him. But, he found himself actually developing feelings for her. It shocked him. He was a vampire; one of the most powerful and feared vampires in the world, and he was _falling in love_? No! He had no soul. How could something without a soul, like himself, feel anything close to love, let alone with his sworn enemy?

He had reached the end of the tunnel. Jonathan, Andrew, and The Master stood facing him, evidently waiting for him to return.

JL: So? Is she falling for it?

Could he confide in his partners the strange feelings he now has? No. They would see it as weakness and kill him. He had to hide it from them.

WM: Yeah. She's really softening up to me. She's ready to meet you guys tomorrow night.

JL: Great work.

Warren tried to return his leader's broad smile, but only managed a partly formed grimace. Nobody seemed to have noticed, however.

M: Very impressive. This looks like my best chance at taking her down.

Warren felt tortured.

_What has happened to me? Why do I feel like this?_

The Expresso Pump, Night

The following night, Warren stood in front of the ally where Andrew and Jonathan were waiting. He was continuing to battle with himself.

_If I take Glory back there, we're going to kill her. Do I want that? _Can_ I kill her? But if I don't kill her, they'll kill _me_. What should I do?_

He saw Glory approaching. It was time for him to decide: Kill her or save her?

GD: Hey.

WM: Um, hi. They . . . um . . . they're back there.

He pointed down into the alley. Glory looked at him with confusion and slight suspicion. He led her into the alley.

_Oh, man. What do I do?_

Andrew and Jonathan emerged from the shadows.

AW: Hi there.

GD: Hello.

JL: Why do you look so nervous?

They were leering at her. Even though he had seen them do that for years at countless victims, Warren unwillingly felt the hair on the back of his neck rise at the sight.

GD: (Warningly, nervously) Warren?

WM: Yeah, um, Jonathan and Andrew: My friends. Right here.

JL: Warren, isn't there something you want to show your girlfriend?

Warren felt pinned to the pavement. He felt the anticipated stares of everyone surrounding him like glaring searchlights. He didn't move.

JL: Fine. Allow me.

Jonathan stepped forward and his face morphed into vampire visage as he did so. Andrew followed suit. Glory whipped out the stake she had hidden in her sleeve. Amazingly, she shoved Warren _away_ from the fight.

_She must think I hadn't known about my friends being vampires._

Glory ducked underneath Jonathan's first blow, then rose and kicked Andrew in the chin and flipped over him, landing behind him. Jonathan charged Glory again, while Andrew got back up and looked over at Warren.

AW: Come on! Help us out, will you?

Then Jonathan went flying past them both and out of the alley into the street. Warren stayed down as Glory tackled Andrew and pulled him away from Warren. Andrew flipped Glory over his head and slammed her to the ground, knocking the wind out of her. He had her pinned to the ground with his hands and knees. He lowered his head to her neck . . .

Then he was flung into the wall of the alley. Warren held out his hand to Glory, who looked up at him in amazement. She took his hand and he raised her to her feet.

GD: How did you . . . ?

WM: Got lucky.

JL: As if, _traitor_!

Jonathan ran up and punched Warren in the jaw. Warren growled and as he whipped back to face Jonathan, his face morphed too, out of anger and pain. He and Jonathan ducked and swung at each other while Glory stood back, watching. After being flung back by Warren, Jonathan saw Andrew backing away, then turning and running away.

JL: (Deadly) You will be sorry for this.

Then he got up and ran after Andrew. Warren's face morphed back to human visage and he turned around to Glory. The expression on her face showed that she had seen his bumpy side.

WM: Glory . . .

She backed away too.

WM: Listen, I can explain everything . . . !

But she had already fled out of the alley as well.

Caleb's Apartment, Day

H: I told you there was something strange about him!

AW: In that sense, there is something strange about _you_ too.

H: But _I'm_ not evil.

GD: But I'm not sure _he_ is either. I told you, he saved me.

AM: (Hopefully) Maybe he's another vampire with a soul?

H: No. I'm the only one in existence. I could sense another soul if there was one.

C: (Sitting down and flipping through a book) Tell us again what happened.

GD: He seemed nervous when he introduced me to his friends . . . they attacked me . . . one of them had me pinned . . . Warren threw him off me . . . one of them called Warren a traitor . . . then they ran off . . . I saw his face all bumpy-like . . . and I left too.

AM: So you didn't give him a chance to explain himself?

GD: I was just so thrown. I didn't get the vampire vibe off of him.

C: My god.

GD: What?

C: (Looking up from the book) Did he mention what his friend's names were, by any chance?

GD: Yeah: Andrew and Jonathan.

C: Oh, it's as I feared. It seems that you've encountered The Three.

GD: Who?

C: The Three: A powerful trio of vampires who work for The Master. She must be getting desperate to bring _them_ into this. They only take care of the most important services of The Master's will.

H: Wow. Glory fought The Three and survived?

GD: It might be just The Two now. I think Warren left them, and that he really cares about me now.

She didn't look at all happy about it.

GD: What should I do? I can't kill him if he wants to be good. But I can't let him live, because he'll think it's out of love or something.

C: You'll have to try to explain it to him. Make him understand.

Glory nodded, now wishing she hadn't accepted the date invitation and that she had just ignored her so-called 'right' feelings.

The Master's Lair

The Master paced in front of Willow, Xander, Giles, and Faith.

M: They have been gone for five hours! Where are they?

XH: Maybe their mouths were bigger than their egos and they got killed?

M: No. The Three cannot be killed by a single Slayer.

At that moment, they heard footsteps approaching outside in the tunnel.

M: See? There they are now. With a corpse, I hope.

Andrew and Jonathan emerged into the cave, looking very upset. Nobody else was with them.

M: Where's Warren? Where's the Slayer's head?

JL: That bitch turned him against us.

M: What?

AW: Warren _saved_ the Slayer. _From_ _us_!

JL: She must've gotten inside his head and convinced him to betray us somehow.

XH: (Satisfactorily) Well, I guess somebody owes me an 'oh, I'm sorry Xander, you were right about us all along' statement.

AW: Hold your tongue, boy.

WR: Does this mean we kill him? I mean, he's a lost cause now, so . . .

JL: Yes, he should be killed, but not by you. Andrew and I will finish him _personally_.

Angel's House, Day

Angel, Spike, and Drusilla backed away and examined the device they had just completed.

AC: Gentleman and lady, behold: The Amplifier! With this, we will increase our strength levels to over ten times our own! Enough to fight any demon or Slayer!

WP: If it works, you mean.

AC: Don't spoil the moment!

DE: We're just going to shake her up, right guys?

AC: Like I said, unless she forces us to do otherwise.

Drusilla shot Spike an appealing look. Spike shrugged helplessly and gave her a look that said very plainly 'Just go with it'.

AC: Alright! Let's go test this baby!

Sunnydale Harbor, Night

Warren snuck onto a cargo ship that would be heading out in a few minutes. He couldn't go back to Glory. Not yet. He had to prove, once and for all, that he is good now. That he has changed. She would never accept him the way he is. He knew what he had to do about it . . .

Sunnydale Street, Night

Glory, Heinrich, Adam, and Amy wandered the streets, looking for Warren.

AM: So, what are you going to say to him?

GD: Something along the lines of 'you're a vampire and evil and I can't be with you', maybe?

AC: Hello there, Slayer.

Angel, Spike, and Drusilla stood in front of them.

GD: Um, who . . . ?

AM: Angel? Spike? Dru? What are you guys doing here?

GD: You know them?

AM: We went to school with them.

GD: We did?

WP: Yeah! You probably just didn't know we were there like everyone else!

GD: Oh. Unpopular kids. Nerds, right?

AC: Don't exaggerate.

GD: So, what do you three want?

AC: To take you down!

GD: Sorry?

DE: He just means that we're going to show you how tough we really are.

WP: Yeah, by kicking your ass!

DE: (Anxiously) What? No, not really! (To Spike) Don't get her mad!

AC: Why? We're invincible! The most powerful-

He was knocked backwards by a sucker punch from Glory.

GD: Wow. You're so not.

Angel got to his feet and took out The Amplifier.

AC: Prepare to meet your demise!

Angel activated the gun, but it shuddered and smoked heavily.

WP: What happened?

AC: Damn it! The amplifying portion of it isn't operational yet. Well, if _we_ can't be _stronger_, then we'll just make _you_ _weaker_!

He switched the set-up from 'amplify' to 'decrease' and aimed it at her.

Then two more figures approached from the shadow of a store next to the scuffle: Jonathan and Andrew.

JL: Slayer.

GD: Ah. You guys again.

AW: You turned Warren against us. You and he will both pay.

AC: Excuse me, but this is my moment of glory! (To Glory) No pun intended, by the way. (Back at Andrew and Jonathan) I am the one who will conquer-!

He was cut short by his neck snapping. Jonathan walked over him toward Glory and the others. Spike and Dru backed away as Jonathan and Andrew engaged Glory and the others.

WP: (Grabbing Dru's hand) Come on.

DE: What?

WP: Let's leave here. The Slayer's onto us now and Angel's dead.

DE: But . . . why can't we do the original plan and help her out?

WP: Do you really think she'll let us after what just happened?

DE: Angel's not here to boss us around anymore! If we help her, she'll forgive us. We could even join her group!

WP: But what can _we_ do?

In front of them, Amy and Adam had already been knocked out. Heinrich was engaged head-to-head with Andrew, while Jonathan effortlessly kicked Glory all over the place.

DE: They need help.

WP: How? The Slayer is being tossed around like nothing and she has superpowers! We're just humans!

Dru's eyes locked on The Amplifier, still in Angel's hand on the ground.

DE: Spike! We could use The Amplifier on them, in reverse.

WP: You mean make _them_ weaker, like Kryptonite on Superman?

Dru nodded enthusiastically. Spike picked up the gun and carefully aimed it at Andrew, who had Heinrich pinned. A stream of solid-looking light shot into Andrew, causing him to recoil and convulse with pain.

But he had barely aimed it at him for more than ten seconds before Jonathan was upon him. He wrenched the gun out of Spike's hand and crushed it. Glory, who had just gotten up from the ground, ran toward them, but Jonathan had already bitten into Spike's neck. Drusilla screamed as Jonathan dropped Spike's drained and lifeless body next to Angel's on the ground.

JL: And _that_ is why children shouldn't get involved in serious matters like this.

Glory took advantage of Jonathan's brief distraction, and landed a good blow on him, knocking him back a little. Andrew and Heinrich were still fighting. Andrew's strength hadn't been completely drained, but he was weaker than before; He and Heinrich were now about evenly matched in strength. Heinrich gave Andrew a powerful blow to the head, which seemed to have knocked him out. He hesitated, considering finishing Andrew while he was down, but then he heard Glory scream in pain. He whipped around and saw Jonathan, still at full strength, holding Glory by her neck against the wall of the store next to them.

Leaving Andrew behind him, Heinrich hurried over and grabbed Jonathan, causing him to release Glory. Jonathan flipped Heinrich over his head and slammed him hard against the wall too.

JL: You have a rather high opinion of yourselves, you know. You thought you could take on anything: Giant snakes, cyborgs, hell gods. But _us_, _The Three_, _The Master's Order_, you never had a chance. We're not like those other wannabe conquerors of mankind. Myself, Andrew, The Master; no one can match our power.

Glory staggered to her feet and took out her stake.

GD: Well, I guess that means I'll have to _outsmart_ you then.

Jonathan dodged the stake easily. He started laughing as he backed away from another strike of Glory's stake and out into the street; which had gotten brighter. He hadn't noticed that the sun had started to rise over the town (They had been fighting for so long), and that their fight had taken place in the shadow of the store they were next to. Jonathan screamed as his flesh began to burn and disintegrate in the sun's light until he collapsed into a pile of dust on the pavement. Andrew, who had woken up seconds ago (Due to his hand having caught fire), had scrambled into the shade and down into the sewers out of harm's way. Heinrich stood with his back against the wall, well inside the shade. Glory turned from the street.

Drusilla was crouched over Spike's body, crying. Glory approached her slowly.

GD: Hey.

Dru looked up in alarm, tears swelling in her eyes.

GD: Listen, I saw what you and Spike did with that gun thingy. Thank you.

DE: It . . . wasn't supposed to end like this! We got . . . carried away with our brilliance.

GD: Well, you and Spike saw sense at the end. Come on.

She lifted Dru to her feet.

DE: (Hopefully) You mean . . . to your group?

GD: Uh . . . maybe.

Glory bent over Amy, who was still unconscious, while Heinrich checked on Adam.

H: He's still out cold.

GD: Yeah, so is she. We'll have to carry them back.

H: Yeah. Well, we're definitely strong enough. I have to take the sewers, though.

GD: Alright. See you back at Caleb's.

Glory lifted Amy over her shoulder and led Dru away from the battle scene, while Heinrich, carrying Adam, climbed down into the sewers too.

The Master's Lair

Andrew staggered into the cave and collapsed to the floor.

M: Andrew? What happened?

Andrew got onto his hands and knees and spat blood out of his mouth.

AW: I've been weakened and Jonathan is dead.

M: Weakened?

AW: Some stupid nerds used some device they had. Took away some of my strength. Now I'm only as strong as a common vampire.

M: And Jonathan?

AW: Sunlight got him.

M: (Incredulous) _Sunlight?_ How?

AW: Slayer tricked him.

Andrew staggered back to his feet, eyes full of hatred.

AW: She and Warren will both suffer for this.

M: Yes. Yes they will.

A Cave in Africa, Night

Warren lay broken on the floor. Every part of him ached. He had never gone through anything like those tests before. Then the voice of his audience drifted out of the darkness.

V: You have proven your worth to me.

WM: Damn right.

Warren gingerly got back to his feet, trying to ignore the pain from his broken ribs.

WM: Now, give me what I came for. Make me officially good.

V: You understand the price of what you ask?

WM: I went through the tests, didn't I? If I wasn't sure, I wouldn't have done it! Do it.

V: Very well. We will return . . . your soul.

A hand within the darkness gestured at Warren. His eyes glowed orange and he screamed in pain . . .


	7. Season Seven

Season Seven

The Master's Lair

The Master sat in her throne, absorbed in thought. It had been entirely too long since she was free last. Then a voice echoed inside her head.

V: Buffy Summers.

The Master jerked and stared around in anger and slight worry: Very few people knew her original human name, let alone able to talk to her inside her head.

M: Who are you?

V: Your last hope to escape the Hellmouth.

M: How do you mean? Why are you in my head? Show yourself!

V: I can't. I have no physical form. This is my only means of communication. Only the greatest of evils in the world can I contact and communicate with.

M: _Who are you_?

V: The literal embodiment of evil in the world; the source of all darkness.

M: Can I have a name?

V: I go by many titles. But I am known most commonly as The Evil that Is.

The Master sat up in her throne, looking both alarmed and interested.

M: You? I always wondered . . . your origins . . . your history and existence . . .

EI: I have come to you to guide you. I want you on the surface as much as yourself.

M: So, you're going to help me?

EI: Yes. The end is coming. The scales could tip either way. I want them in your favor. Whenever evil wins, _I_ win.

M: The end of what?

EI: That's what you and I are going to determine together.

Caleb's Apartment, Day

Glory, Caleb, and Heinrich stood in Caleb's kitchen. Amy was watching TV in the living room. Adam had taken Drusilla outdoors to try to train her to fight.

C: Dreams?

GD: Yeah. I'm not sure if they're real or not. They always involve a girl being murdered.

H: You think it might be visions of the future?

GD: Maybe. I mean, don't Slayers sometimes have visions?

C: Well, yes. But, like everyone else, they can also have regular meaningless dreams. Besides the theme, were there any common traits in the dreams: The age of the girls . . . the killers . . . the locations?

GD: The locations are always different. The girls seem to be in their late teens or early twenties. The killers are never clearly shown.

C: Hm. I'll research those details with Amy and see if we can find anything.

Caleb walked into his living room to get a pile of books from his bookshelf. Glory looked at Heinrich.

GD: Do you think that the dreams are real?

H: In my experience, Slayers get visions when something bad is coming that they'll need extra time to prepare for. We should keep an eye out for anything bad.

AM: (V.O.) Hey guys!

Heinrich and Glory turned to see Amy running into the room, looking alarmed.

AM: I just saw on the news: They've rebuilt Sunnydale High!

Heinrich looked at Glory pointedly.

H: Things like _that,_ for example.

Sunnydale High, Day

Warren wandered around in the school basement, looking dazed and confused. He kept stumbling and bumping into things as though he couldn't see them.

WM: Wha-wha-what am I? I don't know. Nobody knows. Nobody, nobody . . .

Since he had returned from Africa with his human soul, he been overwhelmed with thoughts of the atrocities he had caused with Jonathan and Andrew for over a hundred years. How had he gone from one of three most powerful and feared vampires in history, to falling for a Slayer and willingly getting his soul back? He had done it to make himself truly good so that Glory would accept him. But he hadn't counted on the main issue with having a soul: Remorse. Someone who had a history as bloody as his own, with a soul . . . he should have known that it would end like this. But he hadn't. He had thought only of the Slayer, of his desire to prove himself to her.

WM: Stupid, stupid, stupid. I did a stupid thing. Need to go, need to, need to, need to . . .

The torment of remembering all he had done before had made him near insane. He wished he could rip the soul out of his chest, but knew it was permanent. There was no escape.

WM: No escape, no escape, no escape, no, no, no, no . . .

The Master's Lair

In a room off The Master's main chamber, Xander, Willow, Andrew, Giles, and Faith sat grouped around each other, listening to The Master talking to . . . somebody.

XH: Ya know, I think she's finally cracked; gone nuts staying underground for so long.

FL: Like me?

XH: No, no, Faith, you're the good kind of nuts.

AW: (Incredulously) There's a _good_ kind of nuts?

WR: Even if that is true, it isn't her fault!

XH: Why are you favoring her so much? You see the way she treats us!

WR: Exactly. She treats you all like simple minions. _I_, however-

AW: Excuse me? I'm higher in rank than any of you. I am a member of The Three!

WR: Don't you mean, The Two?

Xander laughed appreciatively.

XH: Well, actually, it's The One now. Real powerful group you guys were: One got himself burned by s_unlight_, one went soft and fell in love, and you lost your _extraordinary vampire powers _because of some toy gun a girl made.

AW: I am still as strong as any regular vampire!

XH: So technically, I _can_ beat your ass now.

AW: (Snorting) As if.

WR: Wait, be quiet! If we listen, maybe we can tell who she's talking too.

M: (V.O.) What do you mean?

Pause.

M: (V.O.) No, of course I don't! But how?

Pause.

M: (V.O.) A coma? But why do we need _him_?

Pause.

M: (V.O.) Yeah? Well, he'd better be. When?

Pause.

M: (V.O.) Fine. I'll wait.

Silence fell for over a minute. Willow turned to the others.

WR: It sounds like she's receiving instructions from something.

RG: For what?

WR: She'll have to tell us at some point. Let's just wait it out.

Then, almost as if on cue . . .

M: (V.O.) Willow! Faith! Get in here! I have job for you both!

Willow and Faith looked at each other uncertainly, then got up and entered The Master's room.

Caleb's Apartment, Night

GD: (Disgustedly) I can't believe this.

AM: Why rebuild the school? Don't they know what that means?

C: They wouldn't. Very few people know about the supernatural.

AM: But some people must have seen some vampires and stuff, right?

C: People have a tendency to rationalize what they can and forget what they can't.

GD: What does the school being back mean, really?

C: Most likely that something big is coming.

GD: Heinrich told me exactly the same thing about my dreams.

AM: Smart old guy, isn't he?

GD: Old, certainly. Smart, probably.

C: Where is he, anyway?

GD: He's checking out the school. Amy and I sorta have the creeps going back there.

C: (Sighing) You can't let personal fears interfere with your mission.

GD: Their not! It's still being done. Just not directly by me.

Before Caleb could respond, his front door opened. In walked Heinrich, dragging Warren behind him.

H: Look what I found cringing in the basement.

Glory stared as Warren staggered over the threshold, partly supported by Heinrich. He fell to his knees and looked up at Glory with extremely bloodshot eyes.

WM: You . . . I . . . me . . . you . . .

AM: Is that Warren?

GD: What happened? What did you do?

Warren started giggling uncontrollably. Glory backed away from him, looking at Caleb and Amy imploringly. They looked at her with equal looks of uncertainty. Glory turned to Heinrich.

GD: What's wrong with him?

H: Well, I found him muttering to himself in the basement of the school. Something has turned him insane.

GD: Obviously.

H: I'm not finished. I also sensed something new about him. I don't know how he did it, but . . . he has a soul now.

A shocked silence followed, broken only by Warren's continued mumbling and giggling.

AM: A soul? Like you?

H: Yeah. This was almost exactly how I was at first: Overcome with guilt over what I had done. But I was just a common vampire who lived for a very long time. _He_ was a member of The Three. The things he would have to remember . . .

He trailed off, looking down at the mumbling and laughing ensouled vampire. Glory didn't know what to do or say for a while.

GD: He did it for me, didn't he?

Everyone looked at her.

C: I'm sorry?

GD: He got his soul for me. He wanted to be good, and knew he couldn't the way he was. So he must've . . .

The all looked down again on the pitiful, squirming vampire on the floor, unsure of what to do.

Sunnydale Hospital, Night

Willow and Faith wandered the halls of the hospital, looking for the right room. The Master had just sent them to pick up a new recruit here: someone who was apparently very important. The building was almost completely deserted. But then, how many people would be here at one in the morning anyway?

FL: So, who is this mysterious new recruit?

WR: I don't know: someone who's been out of action for a while. Apparently, he's been in a coma since Xander sired you.

At last they found the right room and entered. A man was lying on the bed in the center of the room. He had a beard and his hair was much longer, due to having been in a coma for four years. Willow waved her hand over the bed and chanted a spell in Gaelic. As Faith watched outside for anyone coming, Willow clenched her fist and a light shone through the room. The man awoke with a start. He looked up at Willow in confusion.

WR: The Master needs your help. Come with us now. She says you'll want a second chance.

Wesley Wyndam-Pryce got out of bed and followed the two vampires out of the room eagerly.

Caleb's Apartment, Day

Adam and Drusilla came in as Caleb and Amy were discussing their recent soul problem.

DE: Hi guys!

C: Oh. Hello.

AM: How'd it go?

AW: Well, we covered the basics. If there was a trivia battle going on, she'd be a shoe in.

AM: So lots of brains and little brawn, huh? I can relate to that.

DE: Really? You know about Star Wars, Star Trek, James Bond, Doctor Who-

AW: No, Amy, you really can't. Where's Glory?

C: Downstairs with Heinrich and Warren.

AW: Wait, Warren: The vampire!

AM: Yeah. He's a little delicate right now.

AW: What do you-?

C: Apparently, to prove himself to Glory, he went and got his soul back.

AW: Wow. Seriously?

AM: He's sort of . . . nuts right now, so they're trying to calm him down.

AW: Then what?

C: We don't know yet.

The Master's Lair

Wesley stood before The Master.

WW: So, y-you want my help to open the Hellmouth and kill the Slayer?

M: Precisely. I was advised that you would be perfect for this.

WW: Who advised you?

M: My guide. Now, since everyone thinks you are dead, you'll prove an effective weapon.

WW: What will I r-receive if I help you?

M: You were going to rule part of the town with The Principal, weren't you?

WW: No. I only served him. He showed me the true path of ambition.

M: Well, how about this then: not only will you get to kill the Slayer for me . . . you will also get to have your revenge on Caleb.

Wesley grinned eagerly.

WW: Yes. I would like that very m-much. What do I do first?

Caleb's Apartment, Day

In the basement, Warren had stopped mumbling and laughing. He now sat in the corner as though comatose, staring at the wall. Glory and Heinrich were watching him.

H: I kinda feel sorry for him. I mean, I know how painful that is. Having a soul after so long, living with what you did.

GD: So do I, a little. I mean, if he's so determined to be good, I'll help him recover, but it won't go any further than that.

H: Because he's a vampire?

GD: Because he might not yet know the difference between good and bad. I mean, he's only been technically 'good' for a few months, including the days he had no soul and still helped me.

H: I think he could be helpful. I mean, he was a member of The Three. With that comes great power.

GD: Yeah, but he could just as easily use it against us, too.

H: Glory, do you really think he would have gone and gotten his soul back, then come back and attack you? He got it for _you_ in the first place.

Warren stirred a little. They watched as he turned his head toward them.

WM: Glory?

GD: Hi Warren.

WM: You're still here? I thought you'd . . . not be.

GD: I'm still here to help you, until you can manage by yourself.

WM: But . . . but . . . I want to be with . . .

GD: No. You can't. I can't.

WM: But . . . soul . . . ?

GD: Yes, you have your soul. You are good now. I won't kill you. But I can't be with you.

Warren got unsteadily to his feet and approached her imploringly.

WM: I . . . did this . . . for you. To see I meant it. I felt something before. I didn't know what it . . . was. I know it was love now. My soul . . . says its love . . . for you.

Glory looked at him, half pitying, half irritated. Heinrich moved forward.

H: Look. I know what you're feeling now. I have a soul too.

WM: You're with . . . her?

H: As a friend and teammate. Not romantically.

Glory winced as a sudden mental image of herself and Heinrich kissing appeared in her mind.

WM: Then I . . . can be that too?

H: Sure. You can help us out. That's what it means to be good: To help people.

Warren looked hopefully at Glory.

WM: Can I . . . can I help you? Save people?

GD: Of course you can.

Back upstairs later, Glory, Caleb, Amy, Adam, Heinrich, Drusilla, and Warren stood in Caleb's living room.

C: First order of business is to find out whether Glory's dreams are real or not.

WW: They are.

Everyone turned to see Wesley, looking very overgrown and even more disheveled than before, standing in the doorway.

C: You. But you're . . .

WW: Dead? Not quite, just g-got knocked into a coma. Thanks to you.

GD: What are you doing here?

AW: Sorry, who is this guy?

AM: Wesley Wyndam-Pryce: An ex-Watcher. He pretended to be helping us before.

WW: I was under orders from my boss to kill you before.

GD: Your boss is dead now.

WW: Not my new one.

H: Ah, new evil in town?

WW: No. Actually, she told me she's b-been trying to kill you all for years.

GD: The Master.

WW: Good, so you haven't forgotten.

GD: You said my dreams are real? What are they about?

WW: Potential Slayers dying.

H: What?

AM: Huh?

_GD: What?_

C: Oh dear.

GD: Potential Slayers?

WW: Yes. Well, Caleb, any remorse I had for trying to kill you before is g-gone now. You put me in a coma for four years. I will p-pay you back in kind.

With that, he shot out of the house.

GD: (To Caleb) _Potential Slayers?_

C: Yes: Girls who may be called as the next Slayer. Most are unaware of their supposed destiny, while others have already been assigned to their Watchers by The Council.

H: So The Master is having Wesley kill potential Slayers?

C: Of course! He's was a Watcher! He knows how to track down . . . Damn it!

He slammed the kitchen table with his fist.

C: They're going to try to extinguish the line of Slayers.

AM: But how? They can't kill every Slayer on Earth, can they?

H: I think The Master may simply be trying to get under Glory's skin to distract her from something else.

AW: But I thought The Master's goal was to open the Hellmouth and be freed?

C: Yes, it is. But, it is possible that she may be working with something else as well, collaborating goals.

The Master's Lair

M: There is a way to open the Hellmouth manually?

EI: Certainly.

M: How?

EI: There is a seal in the basement of the new High school which, as you should know, was built directly on top of the Hellmouth and you. This seal is one of many official doors to the Hellmouth. Open the Seal of Danzalthar, and the Hellmouth will be unleashed.

M: Good. Now the most important thing: How do you open it?

EI: Blood.

M: Who's?

EI: It doesn't matter. What matters is how much is given.

M: Then how much?

EI: As much as it needs.

M: You're not being very helpful, you know.

Pause.

M: Hello?

Nothing.

M: Damn it! Must've pissed him off . . . or she . . . or it . . . whatever.

She looked at Xander, Willow, Faith, Giles, and Andrew standing in front of her.

M: The Evil that Is has informed me that blood will open the Seal of Danzalthar in the new school's basement. Once this seal is opened, the Hellmouth will be open enough for me to be freed, then we will proceed to open it entirely to unleash the Old Ones back upon the Earth, and I can finally kill the Slayer. Xander and Giles, you two will go open the seal.

XH: Why?

M: You can't fight and Giles should do something useful for once.

XH: I can fight non-humans!

M: Regardless, you are going. Now!

Xander grumbled something under his breath and followed Giles, who looked slightly hurt, out of the cave and into the tunnel.

AW: Where does this leave us then?

M: We wait. I will know once the seal has been opened. I will feel this cave's hold on me release.

WR: What about that scruffy guy?

M: He's still organizing the deaths of all those potential Slayers.

AW: (Skeptically) You can't kill off the entire line.

M: I know. It is merely a distraction for the Slayer until I am freed.

WR: What about the Watcher's Council? They won't let that continue.

M: Well, the Council has been, let's just say, put out of business by our rogue Watcher ally.

At that moment, Glory, Heinrich, and Warren emerged into view.

GD: Hey, just thought we'd check in on you guys. See what's going on.

M: Slayer!

Andrew eyed Warren with distaste.

AW: So, you're officially with _her_ now, are you?

WM: Andrew. Sorry about Jonathan.

AW: It's your fault he got killed! If you had just stuck to the plan, we would have taken her down!

M: Warren, something is different about you since last time. You seem to have . . . an aura now.

FL: He has a soul.

AW&M: What?

GD: How did she know?

FL: The pixie lights floating all round his head and heart, so bright and pretty . . .

AW: _A soul_, Warren? _A stinking human soul?_

WM: I wanted to be good. A soul means goodness.

M: It also means feeling, which is weakness.

H: You know, we didn't come down here just to exchange puns.

M: Yes, why are you here?

GD: Just wanted to see if you were planning something. I mean, I'm sure you didn't revive Wesley just for the sake of it.

M: What makes you think I will tell you my plans?

GD: Well, I'm sure I already know most of it: You woke up Wesley to hunt down and exterminate potential Slayers to distract my attention. You're collaborating with some other big bad to achieve a common goal of opening the Hellmouth and freeing yourself. Plus, something about the high school is crucial to what you're doing.

M: I'm impressed. I thought you needed Caleb to do all the thinking for you.

Glory was tired of punning. She ran forward and threw a punch at The Master. She staggered backward, then lunged forward and knocked Glory down. Heinrich battled Faith and Willow at the same time, while Andrew made straight for Warren.

Sunnydale High, Night

Xander and Giles entered the basement.

RG: Where's the seal? There's nothing here but dirt.

XH: Oh, great! Not only do we have to cut ourselves for this thing, but we also have to _dig it up_?

RG: How do you know it has to be dug up?

XH: You have no slice of brain, do you? Come on.

He and Giles grabbed a pair of shovels that just happened to be there, along with a pick axe, and went to work.

A few minutes later, they uncovered a circular metal seal with a goat's head with its tongue sticking out on it. Xander and Giles looked at each other.

RG: So who has to . . . ?

XH: I vote you.

RG: No! You should-

XH: I already voted you. I can still kick _your_ ass, you know.

Giles sighed, then vamped out and, wincing, bit into his wrist, causing a trickle of blood to fall onto the seal. It glowed brightly. Giles continued to let the blood fall until a corner of the seal sprang open.

RG: (Weakly) Th-that should be enough.

XH: Sissy.

The Master's Lair

The Master gasped. She knew that Xander and Giles had been successful. She shoved Glory aside and strode toward the exit of the cave. There was no interference to stop her.

M: Yes! At last! I'm free!

Glory looked at her in shock.

GD: How . . . ?

M: The Hellmouth has been opened! Well, partly, at least. The entrance was in the basement of the school. Now I am free to rise to the surface and, eventually, kill _you_ personally.

She turned and entered the tunnel. Andrew, Willow, and Faith followed her. Warren looked after them.

WM: This isn't good.

GD: No. We have to tell Caleb.

Caleb's Apartment, Early morning

Caleb, Amy, Adam, and Drusilla were all asleep at the kitchen table when Glory, Heinrich, and Warren burst in (Heinrich and Warren trailing smoke from the barely risen sun).

AM: (Still asleep) Cooking bacon, mom?

GD: Wake up, guys!

They all woke jerkily. Caleb fiddled for his glasses.

C: Glory? Ah . . . sorry. We couldn't find any . . .

GD: The Master's free.

C: What?

GD: The Master is free.

C: I . . . how?

H: She mentioned something about an entrance to the Hellmouth being in the school basement and that it was opened enough to let her out.

C: So it's not entirely open?

GD: No, but it will be if we don't do something about it.

H: She's on her way there now to complete the process.

AW: But it's day out now.

GD: Two of them are already there. She and the rest will have to lie low until tonight.

C: Well, we must not let them finish opening the Hellmouth. Did you overhear anything else?

WM: Um, I heard them say something about that Wesley guy.

H: Yeah, he's obliterated the Watcher's Council.

C: Sweet Jesus.

AM: You mean he's killed them?

GD: Uh huh.

AW: What does this mean?

C: That we are alone. It's us against The Master now. This is the end of it all.

DE: (Dramatically) The Final Frontier . . .

Everyone ignored her.

AW: How should we respond?

GD: The only way we can: Attack in full force.

Sunnydale High, Evening

Xander and Giles sat on the floor in front of the seal, waiting for the others to arrive.

XH: It's been nearly ten hours! The sun must've set by now. Where are they?

RG: How should I know?

Right on cue, the door of the basement banged opened. The Master, Willow, Faith, and Andrew stepped inside. The Master looked down on the seal in the floor.

M: This is it? Not at all what I had in mind.

XH: What did you expect, a plaque saying 'The Master is #1' on it?

M: Shut up and get off the floor, you two.

Giles and Xander got to their feet as The Master stood before the seal, talking to herself (Or rather, to The Evil that Is) again.

Caleb's Apartment, Evening

Since it seemed likely some of them could die in this final fight, Glory had told all her friends to do whatever they wanted, as if today was their last day on earth, until tonight. Adam had gone to see some friends of his who were still in the military after the downfall of The Initiative. Drusilla had gone to the comic book store (She _was_ a nerd, after all). But she, Caleb, Amy, Heinrich, and Warren had stayed at the apartment. She, Caleb, and Amy really had no particular place or people they wanted to see or visit, while Heinrich and Warren _couldn't_ go anywhere even if they wanted to (Sun issues).

AM: Is this really the end of everything?

C: One way or the other, yes.

GD: If this is the last day I'm alive, this is the way I would want to spend it: With all my friends.

C: Thank you. I feel exactly the same.

AM: Me too.

WM: If we do end up stopping them opening the Hellmouth, or even if we somehow destroy it, then what?

H: Depends: If we stop them opening it, we keep guarding it; if we destroy it, we can leave this place behind if we want to; and if we don't die and it's opened, then we'd be fighting until we die: in other words, we'd be screwed.

GD: Nice encouraging pep talk there.

H: That's the blunt truth of it.

C: Well, let's pray that options one or two happens then.

They sat in silence for a while. Caleb looked down at his watch.

C: It's almost sundown. We'd better get ready.

They got up from the table. Caleb and Glory went into the living room with Amy. Warren hung back with Heinrich.

WM: So . . . would you say that I'm your friend?

H: Huh?

WM: Do you consider me your friend?

H: Uh, well, sure. I mean, I've kinda grown attached to you, by a common bond. You know, the soul sharing.

WM: Yeah. I just thought that if I die tonight, I would at least die having friends. Real friends.

H: We're all your friends: Me, Glory, Caleb, Amy, everyone.

WM: Oh. Yeah, I just thought . . . we had a particular partnership of sorts. Two vampires with souls . . . fighting evil together . . . sharing a unique condition . . .

H: That is true. But my circumstances of getting a soul were different than yours, you know.

WM: Yeah, sure.

H: Well, I'm going to go outside for a while. Go help the others prepare.

WM: You don't need to prepare?

H: I've been doing this for more than nine hundred years of my life and death. I've been prepared for this my whole existence.

Heinrich turned and walked out of the apartment and into the darkened courtyard. He stared up at the stars for a few minutes until a noise nearby made him look around. A man stood before him, dressed casually with his hands in his pockets.

Guy: Hello, Heinrich.

H: Who are you?

Guy: My name is Ethan Rayne, worshipper of Peace, and a messenger of The First Good.

H: The main force of good in the world?

ER: Just the one.

H: Why are you here?

ER: To give you this.

He took out of his pocket something that looked like an amulet with a crystal center on a gold chain. Heinrich eyed it as Ethan held it out to him.

H: What is that?

ER: Something that will turn the tide of the coming battle. It will help your chances of winning.

H: How? What does it do?

ER: That's for you to find out.

Heinrich took the amulet cautiously and examined it.

H: But why me?

Looking up, he saw that Ethan had already disappeared into the gathering darkness. He shrugged and walked back into the house.

Glory, Caleb, Amy, and Warren stood in the hallway, holding swords and axes.

C: Heinrich, come over here and grab a weapon. What's that?

He eyed the amulet in Heinrich's hand.

H: Dunno. Some guy who claimed he worked for The First Good gave it to me. Said it was crucial to the battle.

AM: The First Good?

C: The good equivalent of The Evil that Is.

GD: What's The Evil that Is?

C: Oh, sorry. It's an entity that has no physical prescience and is the source of all evil in the world. It has only been known to communicate telepathically with other evil beings. The First Good is the other way around: Source of all good, communicates with good people and such.

AM: Oh.

H: (Holding up the amulet) Does this mean I'm supposed to wear this during the fight?

AM: Well, that's what you're supposed to do when someone gives you a necklace, isn't it?

Heinrich reluctantly put the chain around his neck.

H: Where're Adam and Drusilla, by the way?

C: They're going to meet us halfway to the school. Adam is waiting with Dru at the comic store. He didn't feel it was safe for her to be wandering the streets at night on her own to return here.

GD: Okay then, let's do this.

Glory shouldered her sword and led them out of the apartment.

Sunnydale High, Night

Twenty minutes later, Glory, Caleb, Amy, Heinrich, Adam, Warren, and Drusilla stood facing the newly rebuilt High School. Nobody could think of anything to say. Each was thinking about what was about to happen and how it might end. Then, at the same time, they all moved forward into the school toward battle.

Down in the basement, The Master stood in front of the seal. Xander and Willow flanked her, while Giles, Faith, Andrew, and Wesley (Who had just arrived) stood behind them. Her hands were raised over the seal.

RG: What is she doing?

WW: The Evil that Is is g-giving her instructions on how to open the seal without blood.

The Master started chanting in several languages randomly until the seal glowed again and opened fully this time, revealing a dark hole in the ground.

M: Yes! Come on.

XH: Down there?

WR: The Hellmouth has to be triggered by dark energy. All of us down there should be more than enough to activate it.

They all climbed down a stone spiral slope into the depths of the Hellmouth. It was dark, spacious, and cavernous, with stalagmites and stalactites sprouting from the floor and ceiling.

XH: (Impressively) Wow.

M: How long?

XH: What?

WW: She's talking to The Evil again.

XH: Are you sure she's not crazy?

GD: I'd say so.

They all looked up in astonishment. Glory was peering down into the hole.

GD: I mean, trying to destroy the world? That's pretty insane.

WR: We're not destroying the world, we're taking it over.

GD: By releasing demons and wiping out humanity?

AW: Get out of here!

GD: Sorry, but we have a reservation here to kick your asses.

She and the others descended into the Hellmouth.

DE: But the Helmouth's already been opened it, hasn't it? We're standing inside it right now!

C: The seal, yes. But in order to activate the Hellmouth, they had to come down here and let it feel their dark energy.

DE: (Panicky) _Which they've already done!_

C: Oh . . . yes . . . they have . . . damn it.

AM: I guess stopping them opening it is out of the question now?

M: So, is this a death match then, Slayer?

GD: You bet your already dead ass it is.

M: Kill them all!

The Master, Xander, Willow, Faith, Giles, Andrew, and Warren all morphed into vampire visage and everyone charged.

Caleb and Wesley made straight for each other.

WW: R-Ready to die?

C: No, I'm ready to finish what I started.

Caleb drew back his axe, but Wesley seized it and threw it across the room. They engaged in another hand to hand fist fight.

Andrew and Warren faced each other with looks of contempt.

AW: Ready to join Jonathan in hell, traitor?

WM: I've already been to hell while I was with you guys.

Next to them, Xander and Heinrich circled each other.

XH: Well, your time is just about up, old man.

H: Not before yours is, lab rat.

They lunged at each other, but Xander noticed the amulet around Heinrich's neck. He burst out laughing, pointing at it.

XH: You're wearing a necklace? Ha! That's the way you want to be remembered? Wearing a neck-

Heinrich socked him in the face in response.

Willow and Amy shot bolts of magic at each other, which rebounded off each other; Adam shot his taser rifle at Faith, who ducked; Drusilla held off Giles with a cross and sprays of holy water from a spray bottle, while Glory and The Master looked each other down as any two mortal enemies would do.

M: So, here we are: The end of our long, pointless battle.

GD: Oh shut up and fight already.

Glory bent away from The Master's first blow, then twisted, letting her leg swing into her. The Master stepped backward a few steps, then came back at Glory, knocking her ten feet away to land on the ground. Glory staggered to her feet, feeling dazed. The Master grinned.

M: Just some extra assistance. Really helps out, doesn't it?

She knocked Glory down again.

M: Ever heard of The Evil that Is? Well, he's on _my_ side . . . or she . . . or it . . . Whatev-

Her head jerked backward by the uppercut to the face that Glory gave her.

GD: Doesn't mean I still can't fight you.

Meanwhile, Wesley and Caleb fought more brutally, each trying to overpower the other. Wesley finally got a lucky punch in and Caleb fell to the ground. He picked up Caleb's axe, which happened to be sitting near to where their fight had concluded. He raised it over his head.

WW: Hm. This is becoming rather like Déjà vu, isn't it? Good_bye_.

The axe came down but, continuing with the exact bizarre replay of their last confrontation, Caleb took out his dagger and jabbed Wesley in the chest with it. He twisted it this time though, to make sure that it was fatal. Wesley dropped to his knees, gave Caleb a look of surprised anger and shock, then keeled over sideways onto the ground. Caleb dusted himself off and got up, looking down at Wesley.

C: Yes, it was rather like Déjà vu, except with a better outcome this time.

He looked around at the other battling couples. He saw Warren send Andrew flying backward into the wall, and Heinrich's sword cutting a long slash into the left side of Xander's face.

_Things are going rather well so far. We may have a chance at this after all. _

Then he saw Drusilla being drained by Giles, Amy being shot out of the air by Willow, and Glory being tossed around effortlessly by The Master. Caleb hurried over to Giles and engaged him next, trying not to look at Drusilla's body lying nearby.

Up over all their heads, Amy suddenly found herself overwhelmed by Willow's power. Channeling too much dark magic would be dangerous to any humans attempting it. But Willow wasn't a mere human: She was a vampire. She could manage to hold and channel more power than regular witches, such as herself. She struggled to find a way around Willow's spells, then realized that she had only one desperate hope left to her; her eyes flashed black as she summoned even the darkest powers within her to try to overpower Willow. But it wasn't enough, and she suddenly found herself rapidly looking for a way to break off and regroup instead. It was too much; she had already drained her powers too much. Then Willow sent a powerful burst of dark magic that she couldn't avoid. Excruciating pain hit her, and she fell down into blackness . . .

Glory fell again to the ground. Her arm had been broken earlier and she had bruises all over her body. The Master stood over her, shaking her head.

M: You know, I really thought you'd give me a harder run for my money. Not that I'm complaining, or anything.

Glory spat blood out of her mouth.

GD: You . . . had . . . help . . . bitch!

M: Going out in style, are we? Well, when I'm in charge of the world, I'll be sure to mention your impressive final moments.

She raised her sword.

Then Warren grabbed the blade before she could finish the swing.

WM: No you don't!

M: Warren. Go cry over your soul and stay out of this.

WM: Don't hurt her.

The Master smiled mockingly.

M: Awww. Concerned for your imaginary girlfriend, even though you know she doesn't feel the same way? That's sweet. And foolish.

Warren picked up Glory's sword and slashed at The Master, who looked amused at his attempted valor. As they fought (Or rather, as The Master easily avoided all of Warren's blows), Glory felt her Slayer healing coming into effect, mending her wounds rapidly.

M: You do realize that you can't win or hold me off, don't you?

WM: It doesn't matter. I'm good now. I love that girl, and I'll die defending her if I have too.

M: As you wish.

Glory had heard everything. She looked up in time to see The Master's sword swing and pierce Warren's neck. Warren staggered and turned to face her. They looked into each other's eyes. Warren's last thought before he exploded into dust was the knowledge and satisfaction that the last thing he would see was Glory's face, looking at him with appreciation and sorrow, knowing that he had died defending her.

As Warren's ashes settled to the ground, Glory got to her feet, ducked under The Master and picked up her sword again.

M: Don't you hate it when guys do that?

Glory charged and kicked The Master across the room. Then she heard Heinrich cry out in pain.

Turning, she saw him standing under the hole in the ceiling back into the basement, holding his chest. Then he jerked and a bright light shot out of the amulet he was wearing and through the ceiling. Sunlight fell onto him as he stared down at the amulet in shock.

C: EVERYBODY OUT OF HERE NOW!

Glory glimpsed Caleb and Adam hurrying up the slope and out of the room. She ran toward Heinrich, looking frantically around for Amy and Drusilla, waiting to see them get out before she left herself.

Then she saw Drusilla lying dead nearby and, a few feet away from her, Amy.

Forcing herself not to cry out in despair, she reached Heinrich, who was looking shocked.

H: Glory! I . . . I can feel my soul. It's . . . powering this amulet. It's destroying the Hellmouth!

GD: But . . . what . . . ?

H: Go! Get out!

GD: No! I can't! Not without-

H: There's nothing you can do for the others! It's too late! Save yourself! Go!

GD: Heinrich . . .

Xander, clutching at the deep cut on his face, which had also permanently blinded his left eye, staggered toward Willow.

XH: What's going on? Weren't we _winning_?

WR: Master! What do we-?

M: KILL HIM! KILL HEINRICH BEFORE HE DESTROYS THE HELLMOUTH!

The Master and the others charged toward Glory and the sun-bathed Heinrich.

H: Go! This is the only way we can win!

GD: (Crying) _Win?_

H: Leave now and I can get rid of The Master and the Hellmouth right here!

GD: But you'll die too!

H: I know. I've lived for nine hundred years. This is the way it should end for me.

They looked at each other for a long, final moment. Then the cave shuddered and rocks fell around them.

H: GO! NOW!

Glory ran past him and stumbled up the slope. Heinrich looked over at The Master and the other vampires.

H: Well, I guess we're all going down together.

The Master swung her sword back, but Heinrich had already disintegrated into dust before she reached him. The sunlight spread outward and over The Master and the others.

M: NOOOOOOOOOOO!

The last thing The Master heard before she combusted into dust was a voice in her head that stated:

EI: You failed. Now you die.

Xander, Willow, Faith, Andrew, and Giles all yelled in pain as the sun hit them too. Then the ceiling of the cave collapsed and buried the dust of their remains beneath it.

Outside, Glory staggered through the smoke billowing from the school toward two solitary figures standing in the distance. Caleb and Adam hurried forward and supported her away from the smoke, dragging her along the ground. She coughed rapidly and was sobbing.

C: Glory, it's alright. It's over.

AW: What happened in there?

GD: Heinrich. He . . . destroyed the Hellmouth.

C: The amulet?

Glory nodded silently.

C: Well, if we didn't have that amulet, then we would have lost and we'd all be dead.

AW: (Quietly) Um, Caleb? Seven of us went in there . . . only three of us came out.

Caleb lowered his head in sadness. Adam looked ahead at the sunken school and the destroyed Hellmouth, apparently lost in thought. Glory buried her face into Caleb's shoulder.

They had won, but at a terrible cost: The lives of Heinrich, Amy, Warren, and Drusilla.

Glory remembered the day she and Amy had first recognized the special bond of friendship between them when she helped them re-ensoul Heinrich . . . the day she ran into Heinrich in that alleyway seven years ago when she had just moved to Sunnydale . . . the day she comforted Drusilla after her two friends were killed by The Three . . . the look in Warren's eyes and his actions only a few minutes ago . . .

She released Caleb and wiped her eyes with her singed sleeve.

GD: Oh, Caleb? The Master was working with The Evil that Is. It was giving her advice and extra strength.

C: Oh, that makes sense. (Pause) I'm so sorry.

GD: No, it's fine. We knew the risks. I just didn't think it would be so . . .

Adam turned away from the school.

AW: So, the Hellmouth is gone and The Master is dead?

GD: Yeah. Heinrich got rid of them both with that amulet.

AW: I can't believe that it's actually over.

C: Well, there are other Hellmouths around the world to deal with, you know.

GD: Not now. Please.

C: No, of course. But we did cause a major setback against the forces of darkness.

AW: So, what do we do now?

Glory turned from the demolished school and looked at the road stretching ahead into the distance behind them. Adam and Caleb stood on either side of her, waiting for an answer, also turning and looking ahead at the distance with her.

GD: We live.

The End

**Unfortunately, I was unable to find positions for Joyce Summers, Maggie Walsh, Robin Wood, and any other notable characters in this universe. Let's just assume that they do exist in some form, but are not a major part of the story here.**


End file.
